Racehorse owner and bookmaker, James Brennan entered the variety theatre industry in December 1906 after having converted the athletic hall in his National Sporting Club (Sydney) into an auditorium, thereafter known as the National Amphitheatre. The following year he expanded into Melbourne after taking over the lease of the old Gaiety Theatre.
By 1911 Brennan was ready to further expand his operations, sending his Vaudeville Entertainers companies to play limited seasons in Brisbane, Adelaide and Hobart. That year he also set up the company, Brennan's Amphitheatres Ltd, and took up the lease of the Newtown Hippodrome, formerly operated by I. E. Cole and later the site of Harry Clay's Bridge Theatre. It is believed that he used it as a boxing stadium.
In 1912 Brennan moved from the Gaiety (Melbourne) into his own theatre, which he built on the site of the former Douglas Theatre. The new venue, known as Brennan's Amphitheatre didn't stay within his control for long, however, as that year he negotiated a partnership deal with Ben John Fuller and his brother John Jnr Fullerwhich eventually led to the brothers taking over his circuit. Although effectively run by the Fullers from that point on, the circuit operated for several more years as Brennan-Fuller. After divesting his vaudeville interests, Brennan returned to bookmaking.
Although Brennan's time as a vaudeville entrepreneur was short, merely five years, he nevertheless played a hugely important role in the development of the Australian variety industry in the lead up to a period of massive expansion (ca. 1911 to the mid-1920s). In this respect he provided opportunities for many hundreds of local artists, many of whom went on the carve out long-term careers in Australia, with some going on to find acclaim overseas.
[Source: Australian Variety Theatre Archive]
