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Play with music.
The story begins with the arrival of silly English 'new chum,' Charles Harold Vane Somers Golightly at the Spencer Street Railway Station. A local con artist, Robert Copeland, offers to show Charles around the city, in an attempt to take advantage of him. The scenes move briskly to the Burke and Wills Memorial, then out to Fairholme House on the outskirts of Melbourne. Later scenes include a Chinese opium den and Flemington during the running of the Melbourne Cup. Other characters include Dick Ledger (a 'revolutionary' who speaks on behalf of the 'down-trodden wukkin' man wot is a slave every day o' the week and ain't erlowed to git 's beer on a Sunday'), Detective Lynch and Inspector Lannigan (both with an eye on Copeland), Polly Sweetapple, Frank Seymour, Mother Crosbie, Maggie, Dorothy, Joseph Westley, and Hang Hi.
The musical score, including both pre-taped music accompaniment and live performance, juxtaposed contemporary sounds and styles (rock and pop) with traditional forms such as folk/traditional ballads and Chinese music. Original songs written for the production were 'Marvellous Melbourne', 'Villain's Theme', 'Hero's Theme', 'Mother Crosbie's Girls', 'Heroes and Villains', and 'Opium Den Musak.'
Notes
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Adapted by Delyse Anthony and DM201 students from the original text by Alfred Dampier, J. H. Wrangham, Garnet Walch, and Thomas Somers, Marvellous Melbourne was chosen by the University of Queensland's Drama Department in order to take advantage of the research into the play by Anthony (then a Master of Arts candidate). Her eventual thesis reconstructed a complete version of the play from several original manuscripts.
An attempt to restore a microcosm of Australian theatre from the nineteenth century, the production adopted many of that century's performance techniques, particularly the way in which actors represented emotions through heightened realism, the use of music to illustrate tension, and by the reliance on tableaux to display conflict.
Production Details
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1994: Avalon Theatre, St Lucia (Brisbane), 20-22 October. Producer University of Queensland Drama Department ; Director Delyse Anthony ; Music Director Clay Djubal ; Design Tabitha Carr-Thompson, Richard Fryberg, Angela Handley, Sara Harris, Julia Hogarth, Kelly Johanson, Karen Liversidge, Michael Sealy, Emily Tomlins ; Costumes Serena Melloy ; Chorus Tabitha Carr-Thompson and Keltie McAllister ; Production Manager Tabitha Carr-Thompson; Stage Manager Karen Liversidge ; Sound Clay Djubal and Kelly Johanson.
Cast Michael Sealy (Tom/Mickey/Hyram/Hank/Statue/Flashlight/Derelict/Pool Shark), Richard Fryberg (Robert Copeland), Tabitha Carr-Thompson (Maggie), Justine Vlad (Dorothy), Julia Hogarth (Frank Seymour), Karen Liversidge (Charles), Amanda Williams (Jack), Serena Melloy (Dick), Clay Djubal (Bob/Detective Lynch), Angela Handley (Inspector Lannigan), Michelle Dobbs (Hang Hi/Dr Fenton), Lyndelle Green (Polly Sweetapple), Sara Harris (Will/Oatleigh), Kelly Johanson (Mrs Deane), Alison Kerr (Patty Fletcher), Keltie McAllister (Joe), Emily Tomlins (Mother Crosbie/Joseph Westley).
Cast members also doubled up roles as Chinese characters, waifs, and prostitutes.
Publication Details of Only Known VersionEarliest 2 Known Versions of
Related Works
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y
Marvellous Melbourne
1886
single work
drama
The story begins with the arrival of silly English 'new chum,' Charles Harold Vane Somers Golightly at the Spencer Street Railway Station. A local con artist, Robert Copeland, offers to show Charles around the city in an attempt to take advantage of him. The scenes move briskly to the Burke and Wills Memorial, then out to Fairholme House on the outskirts of Melbourne. Later scenes include a Chinese opium den, and Flemington (during the running of the Melbourne Cup). Other characters include : Dick Ledger (a 'revolutionary' who speaks on behalf of the 'down-trodden wukkin' man wot is a slave every day o' the week and ain't erlowed to git 's beer on a Sunday'), Detective Lynch and Inspector Lannigan (both with an eye of Copeland), Polly Sweetapple, Frank Seymour, Mother Crosbie, Maggie, Dorothy, Joseph Westley and Hang Hi.
-
y
Marvellous Melbourne : Soundtrack
Clay Djubal
(composer),
1994
Brisbane
:
Have Gravity Will Threaten
,
1994
Z1527656
1994
single work
lyric/song
Original songs and soundtrack music from the 1994 University of Queensland Drama Department revival of Marvellous Melbourne. Lyrics and music by Clay Djubal (except tracks 5, 6, 9, 10, and 11). All vocals and all instruments by Clay Djubal, except 'Mother Crosbie's Girls (additional vocals by Tabitha Carr-Thompson, Kelly Johanson, Alison Kerr, and Serena Melloy) and 'Hero's Theme' (spoken word by Michael Sealy).
Works about this Work
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Lively Art, Dismal Science : A Century of Queensland Playwriting
2002
single work
criticism
— Appears in: Hot Iron Corrugated Sky : 100 Years of Queensland Writing 2002; (p. 200-213)
-
Lively Art, Dismal Science : A Century of Queensland Playwriting
2002
single work
criticism
— Appears in: Hot Iron Corrugated Sky : 100 Years of Queensland Writing 2002; (p. 200-213)
- Melbourne, Victoria,
