VAUDEVILLE Community Survey

VAUDEVILLE by Brink Productions Community Survey Thank you for participating in our Vaudeville Survey. ABOUT THE COMPANY Brink is a theatre company based in Adelaide. We create original plays and performances. The stories we tell are often inspired by real life. We try to be as inventive as possible in the way we tell our stories on stage. THE SHOW Brink’s latest show is called Vaudeville. We’re halfway through making it. Vaudeville will be a solo show – a one- man vaudeville act. It is inspired by the life of Adelaide actor Rory Walker’s great grandfather George W Walker who was a vaudevillian in the first half of the twentieth century. George was a colleague of Sir Harry Lauder and contemporary of Charlie Chaplin. Originally working around Scotland, his career eventually brought him to Australia. We have a record of him touring to Mt Gambier and the surrounding regions. WHAT WE’RE DOING We’re looking for anecdotes and memories of seeing (or being in) vaudeville, music hall or variety nights during the first half of the twentieth century. The memories will help us formulate ideas for the show. We might be able to re-create old vaudeville routines people have recalled, or we might find a song that would suit the show perfectly. Many vaudevillians used to incorporate local stories into their routines and we’d like to find a way to do that too. We’re hoping Vaudeville will transport our audiences back to a bygone era. Anything we can learn about the days of travelling vaudeville and how it had an impact on the community will help our show to be as authentic as possible. YOUR ROLE Your stories and responses will be shared with BRINK as they create their new work. The information you provide may or may not be used for the creative development of the show. There is NO need to answer every question, any contribution or comments will be appreciated. We look forward to reading and sharing your responses. If you have any questions please contact Jessie Lumb, Arts and Cultural Facilitator on [email protected] Please complete your survey and return to Jessie Lumb. Are you willing to be contacted if we have any questions about your responses? Y or N Click or tap here to enter text. Name Click or tap here to enter text. Address Click or tap here to enter text. City / Town Click or tap here to enter text. Email Click or tap here to enter text. Phone Click or tap here to enter text. Can you recommend any other community members we should connect with? Name Click or tap here to enter text. Phone Click or tap here to enter text. Name Click or tap here to enter text. Phone Click or tap here to enter text. 1 MEMORIES OF MUSIC HALL, VARIETY NIGHTS & VAUDEVILLE 1. What was one of the earliest variety/vaudeville shows you recall seeing? a) What made it memorable? 2. What local theatre/town hall/venue did you see it in? Click or tap here to enter text. a) Is it still active? Click or tap here to enter text. b) If so, how has it changed? c) If not, do you know what happened to it? 3. What were the social rituals that used to accompany a night out at the theatre? a)Do they still occur? Click or tap here to enter text. 2 4. Can you tell us about the kinds of vaudeville acts/routines you liked best? 5. Do you have any early memories of first seeing film? 6. Did you ever host/billet a travelling performer? 7. Who was the most famous performer you ever saw on stage? 8. Did you ever perform yourself? a) If so, tell us about your act. 3 9. Are there any local identities who perform unusual acts that you think we should meet? LOCAL HISTORY We’re looking for local stories that occurred in your town any time prior to 1920. Do you have any anecdotes you could share with us under any of the following headings: PROGRESS (eg. was there a significant local theatre or town hall built in your town, prior to 1920?) FAMOUS FACES (eg. did anyone famous come from or make their mark on your town, prior to 1920?) THE FORCES OF NATURE (eg. any major natural event – fire, flood, storm – that impacted town, prior to 1920?) 4 COMMUNITY (eg. was there any kind of public incidents that captured the focus of the town, prior to 1920?) WORLD WAR I (eg. is there a WWI-related story or event that has a particular resonance for your town?) FAMILY (eg. do you have any of your own family’s folklore from this era that you’d like to share with us?) Is there anything else you think we should know? 5 .

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