Hit and Run single work   musical theatre   revue/revusical   humour  
Issue Details: First known date: 1954... 1954 Hit and Run
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AbstractHistoryArchive Description

Intimate revue.

Described as 'Parodies and burlesques against a background of neatly turned melodies', Hit and Run combined imported sketches 'from the Globe and Lyric revues, London' (Sydney Morning Herald 28 August 1954, p.18) and original material from the in-house creative team of McKellar, Donovan, and Mulcahy.

Notes

  • The Sydney Morning Theatre critic, A. A., was not impressed with this second production from the Phillip Street Theatre company, noting that while the imported skits 'seemed to strike the auditorium with a dull, strenuous and distinctly non-humorous thud, even the locally-written work was below the sharply satirical standard reached in Mr Orr's previous productions'. The critic went on to write that 'If this was modern sophisticated entertainment, it is time for anyone with half a mind to fold up his tent and, Arab-like, depart for the wilderness'. Despite such negative criticism, A. A. still managed to salvage some good from the show, suggesting that the original musical numbers were 'crisp and amusing'.

    Of the cast, Lyle O'Hara appears to have made the greatest impression. 'With her cavernous voice and fiercely solemn expression she is never just a character, but always a caricature - splendidly outrageous in every glance and gesture, an original comic creation before she utters a word. And of course', the critic adds, ' there were such reliable antic-artists as Charles Tingwell, bewailing his solitariness in the "Dead Heart"; Ray Barrett, ogling and gurgling as a Genie-with-the-light-brown-hair; Gordon Chater and David Nettheim, extracting the essence of fun even out of routine situations and verses; together with those lovely and lively young ladies, Bettina Welch, June Salter and Lola Brooks' (18 September 1954, p.6).

Production Details

  • 1954: Phillip Street Theatre, Sydney ; 15 September - 31 December.

    • Director William Orr.
    • Cast incl. Bettina Welch, Lyle O'Hara, Lola Brooks, June Salter, Susanne Musitz, Charles Tingwell, Gordon Chater, David Nettheim, Ray Barrett.

Publication Details of Only Known VersionEarliest 2 Known Versions of

First known date: 1954
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Related Works

Happy Returns John McKellar , Gerry Donovan , Lance Mulcahy (composer), Phillip Street Theatre , 1955 single work musical theatre revue/revusical humour

Intimate review.

For this revue celebrating Phillip Street Theatre's first birthday, most of the sketches and songs were sourced from the three previous productions. The Sydney Morning Herald critic, A. A., writes that as

'an attempt to re-present the wittier items from past shows... it does not quite succeed. Why? Is this critic just a churlish pedant likely to be bored by humour below the standard of Aristophenes and Moliere? Or has some of the material gone stale with repetition? Or are there no fresh personalities coming along to interpret it with the necessary lean and high spirits?' (14 May 1955, p.18).

According the Herald's review, the highlight was John Meillon 'jerking and throbbing with tremulous frenzy, [providing] an extraordinarily clever comment on Johnnie Ray's brand of exhibitionism; it was more than mere mimicry; it was true and telling caricature'. Special mention is also made of Lyle O'Hara, 'bizarre and grotesque', wailing about the mysteries of Baghdad; Gordon Chater in bib and golden curls, analysing an infant's psychology; and Ray Barrett going into a soft shoe routine on the theme of the Elizabethan Theatre being situated in Newtown.
The Birthday Show John McKellar , Lance Mulcahy , Phillip Street Theatre , Dot Mendoza (composer), 1959 single work musical theatre revue/revusical humour

Intimate revue.

Devised in order to celebrate the Phillip Street Theatre's fifth birthday, The Birthday Show comprised a smattering of new material along with popular favourites from previous productions, notably Top of the Bill, Hit and Run, Hat Trick, Two to One, Mr and Mrs, Around the Loop, Cross Section, and Bats.

Songs interpolated into the production included 'Oh What a Year it's Been' and 'Trite Fantastic' (McKellar); 'The Oracle' (Rasdall/Goldman); 'The World is My Ashtray', 'Tiger Moth', and 'Noel' (McKellar/Mendoza); 'Katoomba' (McKellar/Mulcahy); 'Soap Opera', 'Breakfast Delight', and 'White Carnations' (McKellar/Donovan); 'Golden Hair', 'You Came from Outer Space', 'Beside Myself', and 'Wow of a Frau' (McKellar/Donovan/Mulcahy); 'Bread Love and Teddy Bears' (McKellar/Frazer); 'Queen's Square' (Nettheim); 'Letter Song' (Taylor/Mulcahy); 'Circulation', 'Cuckoo', and 'Call of the Wild' (Donovan/Mulcahy); 'April in Fairbanks' (Grand); 'Woy Boy' (Cranko/Swan); 'Don't Let Him Know You Too Well' (Cranko/Addison); 'Surly Girls' (Flanders/Swan); 'Bedside Manners' (Frazer); and 'Happy Birthday' (Mendoza).
Phillip Street Revue Phillip Street Theatre , 1960 single work musical theatre revue/revusical humour

Intimate revue.

Comprising songs and sketches from the Phillip Street Theatre revues staged over the previous six years, this production also included several new faces amongst the cast.

According to a review in the Sydney Morning Herald, the highlights were a sketch titled 'Soap Opera'; Jill Perryman in 'The World is My Ashtray (and you would be my next cigarette...)'; 'Swan Like', a sketch 'where wooden swans creak and ballet is reduced to controlled and humorous gymnastics'; and 'Cinderella on Ice', described as a devastating crack at the slippery surface of pantomime' (28 April 1960, p.6).
VIEW ALL RELATED WORKS (3)

Works about this Work

Parodies and Burlesques in New review A. A. , 1954 single work review
— Appears in: The Sydney Morning Herald , 18 September 1954; (p. 6)
— Review of Hit and Run John McKellar , Gerry Donovan , 1954 single work musical theatre
Parodies and Burlesques in New review A. A. , 1954 single work review
— Appears in: The Sydney Morning Herald , 18 September 1954; (p. 6)
— Review of Hit and Run John McKellar , Gerry Donovan , 1954 single work musical theatre
VIEW ALL WORKS ABOUT (1)

PeriodicalNewspaper Details

Note:
This entry has been sourced from research undertaken by Dr Clay Djubal into Australian-written popular music theatre.
Last amended 18 Sep 2014 13:22:40
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