EPHEMERA COLLECTION FINDING AID J.C. Williamson Gilbert & Sullivan programs Performing Arts Programs and Ephemera (PROMPT) Australian Collection Development James Cassius Williamson was an American actor who immigrated to Australia in the 1870s. Along with business partners, such as William Musgrove, his theatre company became one of the most dominant in colonial Australia. After his death in 1913 the company, now named J. C. Williamson Ltd. continued under the direction of George Tallis and the Tait brothers (who remained involved in the company until the 1970s). J. C. Williamson continued to be one of the biggest theatre companies in Australia throughout the first three quarters of the 20th century. J. C. Williamson held the license for theatres in Melbourne, Sydney, Brisbane, Adelaide and New Zealand (at times more than one theatre in each city). In 1976 the company closed, but the name was licensed until the mid 1980s. This list includes productions of Gilbert and Sullivan operettas held in J. C. Williamson theatres, as well as those produced by J. C. Williamson and performed in other theatres under venue hire arrangements. Content Printed materials in the PROMPT collection include programs and printed ephemera such as brochures, leaflets, tickets, etc. Theatre programs are taken as the prime documentary evidence of a performance staged by the J.C. Williamson company. In a few cases however, the only evidence of a performance is a piece of printed ephemera. In these cases the type of piece is identified, eg, brochure. The list is based on imperfect holdings and is updated as gaps in the Library’s holdings for these artists are filled. Unless otherwise stated, all entries are based on published programs in the PROMPT collection. Access The J.C. Williamson PROMPT files may be accessed through the Library’s Petherick Reading Room by eCallslip request: http://nla.gov.au/nla.cat-vn3666430. Arrangement The sole arrangement of this finding aid is chronological based on the start date of each production. All dates are based on evidence in the programs or ephemera, or have been confirmed by accessing newspaper articles and advertisements through Trove. PROMPT /EPHEMERA Collection Finding Aid J.C. Williamson Gilbert & Sullivan programs Entries for each program in the main section are arranged as follows: Year of production Title of Production / creator if known Date (day and month) Theatre/venue Headline performers Brief description of item holdings, ie “2 copies of program” An index to headline performers (listing performer’s name, year of appearance and venue), venue and production title is also provided at the end of the document. Other Library holdings relating to J.C. Williamson & Co. The National Library’s collection also includes: . Scrapbooks, journals and personal papers in the Records of J. C. Williamson 1874-1976; . scores for J. C. Williamson productions; . Pictures; . Broadsides relating to specific J. C. Williamson productions . Bound volumes of J. C. Williamson programs; and . Issues of the J. C. Williamson Ltd. Magazine See also separate PROMPT ephemera collection finding aids to: . J. C. Williamson general theatre programs, film related ephemera and overseas productions collected by the company for reference . J.C. Williamson pantomime programs and libretti collected by J. C. Williamson . J.C. Williamson grand opera, operetta, comic opera and light opera programs See also J.C. Williamson in the TROVE discovery service which includes performance reviews and advertisements in Australian newspaper and magazines as well as other archival and pictorial material. The Library has related holdings for individual actors who worked with J.C. Williamson & Co. in the performing arts programs and ephemera (PROMPT) sequence. 2│55 www.nla.gov.au May 2012 Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 2.1 Australia PROMPT /EPHEMERA Collection Finding Aid J.C. Williamson Gilbert & Sullivan programs 1889? The Yeomen of the Guard Season commencing 20 April New Princess Theatre, Melbourne (Victoria) Starring Mr T. Grundy, Mr W. Elton and Miss Nellie Stewart 1 program See also Australian newspaper and magazine coverage 1889 Patience Season commencing 8 June New Princess Theatre, Melbourne (Victoria) Starring Mr Howard Vernon 1 program See also Australian newspaper and magazine coverage 1889 H.M.S. Pinafore Season commencing 19 June New Princess Theatre, Melbourne (Victoria) Starring Mr W. Elton 1 program See also Australian newspaper and magazine coverage 1890 The Gondoliers Season commencing 25 October New Princess Theatre, Melbourne (Victoria) Starring Miss Maggie Moore, Miss Florence Young, Miss Flora Graupner and Mr William Elton 1 fragment of program See also Australian newspaper and magazine coverage 1891 The Yeomen of the Guard Season commencing 19 December New Princess Theatre, Melbourne (Victoria) Starring Mr H. Bracy 1 program See also Australian newspaper and magazine coverage 1892 The Gondoliers Season commencing 16 July Her Majesty’s Theatre, Sydney (New South Wales) Starring Mr George Lauri, Mr Sydney Deane, Miss Elsie Cameron and Miss Florence Young Fragments of program See also Australian newspaper and magazine coverage 1892 Iolanthe followed by Charity Begins At Home / Alfred Cellier Season commencing 30 July Her Majesty’s Theatre, Sydney (New South Wales) Starring Miss Flora Graupner, Miss Violet Varley, Mr Howard Vernon and Mr George Lauri Fragments of program See also Australian newspaper and magazine coverage 3│55 www.nla.gov.au May 2012 Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 2.1 Australia PROMPT /EPHEMERA Collection Finding Aid J.C. Williamson Gilbert & Sullivan programs 1892 The Mikado Season commencing 17 August Her Majesty’s Theatre, Sydney (New South Wales) Starring Mr Allan Morris, Miss Elsie Cameron and Mr Henry Bracy 2 sets of different program fragments See also Australian newspaper and magazine coverage 1892 The Yeomen of the Guard Season commencing 18 August Her Majesty’s Theatre, Sydney (New South Wales) Starring Miss Flora Graupner and Mr George Lauri 1 program 1 fragment of program See also Australian newspaper and magazine coverage 1892 The Mikado Season commencing 3 September Her Majesty’s Theatre, Sydney (New South Wales) Starring Mr Edward Kelly, Miss Elsie Cameron, Miss Clara Merivale and Mr Henry Bracy 2 sets of different program fragments See also Australian newspaper and magazine coverage 1893 The Vicar of Bray / Sydney Grundy preceded by Trial by Jury Season commencing 5 August Lyceum Theatre, Sydney (New South Wales) Starring Mr Howard Vernon and Miss Flora Graupner Fragments of program – pasted onto the reverse of The Mikado fragment from the same year See also Australian newspaper and magazine coverage 1893 The Mikado Season commencing 21 October Lyceum Theatre, Sydney (New South Wales) Starring Miss Nellie Stewart, Mr William Rosevear and Mr Howard Vernon 1 program – incomplete (fragment pasted onto board) See also Australian newspaper and magazine coverage 1893 The Pirates of Penzance Season commencing 9 December Lyceum Theatre, Sydney (New South Wales) Starring Miss Nellie Stewart, Mr Howard Vernon, Mr Joseph Tapley and Mr Charles Ryley 1 photocopy of program See also Australian newspaper and magazine coverage 1898 The Mikado Season commencing 4 June Theatre Royal, Perth (Western Australia) Starring Mr George Lauri, Mr Howard Vernon and Miss Mabelle Darley 1 program – incomplete (fragment only) See also Australian newspaper and magazine coverage 1898 The Gondoliers Season commencing 11 June Theatre Royal, Perth (Western Australia) 4│55 www.nla.gov.au May 2012 Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 2.1 Australia PROMPT /EPHEMERA Collection Finding Aid J.C. Williamson Gilbert & Sullivan programs Starring Mr George Lauri, Mr P. Bathurst and Miss Millie Tree-Chapman 1 program – incomplete (fragment only) See also Australian newspaper and magazine coverage 1900 H.M.S. Pinafore Season commencing 19 May Her Majesty’s Theatre, Melbourne (Victoria) Starring Mr Wallace Brownlow, Mr Charles Kenningham, Miss Carrie Moore and Mr George Lauri 1 program See also Australian newspaper and magazine coverage 1902 Iolanthe followed by Trial by Jury Season commencing 5 July Her Majesty’s Theatre, Melbourne (Victoria) Starring Mr Howard Vernon, Mr Howard Thorley, Miss Celia Ghiloni and Miss Carrie Moore 1 program See also Australian newspaper and magazine coverage 1904 Patience followed by Charity Begins At Home / Alfred Cellier Season commencing 17 September Her Majesty’s Theatre, Melbourne (Victoria) Starring Mr Howard Vernon, Miss Celia Ghiloni and Miss Florence Young 2 copies of program See also Australian newspaper and magazine coverage 1904-5 Patience Season commencing 17 December Her Majesty’s Theatre, Sydney (New South Wales) Starring Miss Dolly Castles, Miss Celia Ghiloni, Mr Frank Wilson and Mr Howard Vernon 3 copies of program See also Australian newspaper and magazine coverage 1905 H.M.S. Pinafore Season commencing 7 January Her Majesty’s Theatre, Sydney (New South Wales) Starring Miss Alexia Bassian / Miss Dolly Castles, Mr Charles Danby, Mr Howard Vernon, Miss Celia Ghiloni 3 copies of Theatrical Enterprise containing program information – all have handwritten annotations showing the substitution of Castles for Bassian See also Australian newspaper and magazine coverage 1905 The Pirates of Penzance Season commencing 28 January Her Majesty’s Theatre, Sydney (New South Wales) Starring Miss Alexia Bassian, Miss Celia Ghiloni and Mr Howard Vernon 1 program