Revusical.
Set in Spain, but staged in 1915 under the cryptic title Central 3251, this one-act 'musical travesty' continues the adventures of Ike Cohen and Morris Levi amid 'a succession of laughable turns, merry dances and tuneful songs'. An Age critic further notes:
Messrs Bert Le Blanc and Jake Mack as Ike Cohen and Morris Levi [bear] the brunt of the travesty upon their shoulders ... Farcical interludes followed one another in rapid succession, [with] particular amusement being aroused by their fishing scene (12 July 1915, p.14).
The production was staged from 1916 onwards as the 'spicy, sparkling Spanish spree' In Old Seville (Brisbane Courier 5 January 1918, p.2). A Brisbane theatre critic indicates that Le Blanc (Ike) and his off-sider Jack Mack (Morris) play a pair of bullfighters. The review also refers to the production as a 'musical burlesque' (7 Jan. 1918, p.9).
The 1915 Melbourne production saw Carrie Moore garner much acclaim for 'My Bird of Paradise' (her 'latest song success') and the rousing patriotic ditty 'I Love You Australia' (performed as squadron after squadron of Light Horse marched across a cinematograph screen at the back of the stage). Along with Nellie Fallon's three well-received songs and dances and Carlton Chase's hit 'In the Heart of the City', the production's other musical sequences involved performances by the New York Comedy Four and the Pony Ballet's humorous 'Charlie Chaplin Ballet'. Four other ballets were staged by this troupe of dancers: 'The Quaint Pyjama Ballet', 'The Pretty Pierrot Ballet', 'The Novel Railroad Ballet', and 'The Clever Spanish Ballet' (Age 10 July 1915, p.16).
1915: Bijou Theatre, Melbourne, 10-23 July.
1915: Melrose Theatre, Perth, ca. October/November.
1915: Kings Theatre, Adelaide, ca. December 1915.
1916: Empire Theatre, Brisbane, 18-24 March (return season: 19-21 April).
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1918: Empire Theatre, Brisbane, 5-11 January.
1918: Bijou Theatre, Melbourne, 23 February-1 March.
1918: Empire Theatre, Brisbane, 21-27 December.
1921: Harry Clay's Sydney and Wollongong circuits, ca. June/July.
1921: Lyric Theatre, St Kilda (Melbourne), 12-17 November.
1924: Harry Clay's Sydney circuit, ca. March/April.