In Part 1 BOB FERRIS traced the early theatrical work of Fanny Dango in England to her 1907 Australian debut in The Dairymaids through to The Belle of New York musical. Part 2 follows Fanny’s career with the Royal Comic Opera Co., to her farewell appearance in Australia in 1910.
The Belle of New York musical concluded its short but successful revival at Melbourne’s Princess Theatre on 11 December 1908. The show was another success for J.C. Williamson, it was well attended by enthusiastic patrons who were delighted with the many and varied musical numbers, including ‘The Purity Brigade’ and ‘At Ze Naughty Folies Bergeres’ from Olive Godwin (as the Belle) and ‘Teach Me How To Kiss’ and ‘La Belle Parisienne’ by Fanny (as Fifi Fricot).
From this lively musical, the Musical Comedy Company and Fanny turned to pantomime.
Cover of the book of words for Jack and Jill
Theatre Heritage Australia
Fanny Dango—from Jack and Jill souvenir program
Theatre Heritage Australia
As its annual Christmas pantomime for 1908, J.C. Williamson’s Musical Comedy Co., presented, for the first time in Australia, J. Hickory’s Jack and Jill. The pantomime which had little to do with the old nursery tale other than the title, opened at Her Majesty’s Theatre, Melbourne on 19 December. The press described it as a lavish production with the costumes, scenery, special effects and features, said to surpass previous pantomimes produced by Williamson. The stage management by Gerald Coventry, sets by Coleman and Upward, and the work of Jennie Brenan, as ballet mistress, were especially noteworthy. The dance numbers came in for special praise, particularly the costuming, with the Butterfly costume designed by artist, Ida Rentoul singled out in reviews.
An experienced cast had been assembled, including Fanny as Jill—the principal girl—and Stella Gastelle as a cheeky and lively Jack. Gastelle was a seasoned performer and had played the principal boy for several years in English provincial and London pantomimes with roles that included ‘Robinson Crusoe’ and ‘Aladdin’ amongst her credits. Other principal cast members included Stella Selbourne as Prince Opulent, Bert Gilbert as the ‘Bad Baron’ and J.M. Campbell as the Dame who provided much of the humour. The performances of all the leading characters, particularly those of Fanny and Stella Gastelle ensured the pantomime’s success. The Bulletin review awarded Stella and Fanny first-class certificates in the plum and peach section of the exhibits, high praise indeed.1
Sheet music cover for ‘When You Steal a Kiss or Two’ from Jack and Jill
National Library of Australia, Canberra
Stella Gastelle, the Principal Boy in Jack and Jill—from Jack and Jill souvenir program
Theatre Heritage Australia
As audiences had come to expect, Fanny’s dancing was graceful and mercurial and her two solos, ‘Splashing in the Briny’ and ‘Just Someone’, and her duet ‘When You Steal a Kiss or Two’ with Stella Gastelle were ’capital’ numbers. Stella also had a hit with ‘My Starlight Maid’, this song and ‘Splashing in the Briny’ both benefitted from some of the special effects which punctuated the show. The moving pictures of waves breaking over the female bathers and on to the shore as Fanny sang and the larger than life facial image of Stella shown in the centre of a star in her ‘My Starlight Maid’ number were brilliant pieces of staging according to the Melbourne Argus newspaper.
The strength of Fanny’s singing voice was again questioned with one critic noting that ‘in her solo “Splashing in the Briny” she may as well whistle it for all the difference in effect it would be.’2
Jack and Jill was very popular with the Melbourne public, drawing full houses on all occasions. According to the Melbourne press, ticket sales for the first fortnight of the pantomime were well ahead of sales achieved by Mother Goose and Humpty Dumpty, two of Williamson’s earlier pantomime successes. And after eight weeks, management claimed that 150,000 people had seen the pantomime and another indication of success was shared by the music company Allen & Co., which reported excellent sales of sheet music for all the pantomime numbers, with special favourites being Fanny’s two solos, her duet with Stella Gastelle, Stella’s ‘My Starlight Maid’ and Bert Gilbert’s ‘How de-do-de Day’.
In mid-February 1909, while Jack and Jill was still running in Melbourne, Fanny was transferred to Sydney to appear at Her Majesty’s with the Royal Comic Opera Company in the role of Renee de Saint Mezard, Napoleon’s Imperial ward, in The Duchess of Dantzic. This cast change was brought about due to the illness of Betty Ohls. Fanny’s participation in the show was brief as the run of fifty-six performances of The Duchess of Dantzic was curtailed for the revival of The Dairymaids. However, in her short stay with the musical, Fanny won encore honours for her rendition of ‘Le Petit Corporal’ and as The Don of Punch wrote, Fanny made the most of the dance associated with the song; ‘if this bright young lady couldn’t sing a note her dancing would pull her through’.3
After its record breaking run in Melbourne, Jack and Jill moved to Sydney as the traditional Easter pantomime. Among a number of cast changes was the absence of Fanny due to a decision by the Williamson organisation that she should tour New Zealand with the Royal Comic Opera Co., in the coming April.
As an aside, in an unabashed interview with the press while on tour in New Zealand, Fanny said that after playing the part of Jill for several weeks she was glad to be out of it and back in musical comedy:
Pantomime is too exhausting ... You never rest; you have to be always on the watch, always on the go—here a little bit of a finale, and there an entrance—always you are changing your costume, and, when, you are behind the scenes, great pieces of scenery are charging down and rolling over you before you can get out of the way. It is awful and then it lasts the whole evening from halfpast seven till eleven. 4
While given the veracity of Fanny’s comment, pantomimes, nevertheless, were good money earners for performers, they ran for relatively short seasons and paid a higher weekly rate of pay. Fanny’s initial contract with Williamson provided £25 per week for pantomimes compared to a salary of £20 per week at other times.
Advertising postcard for The Dairymaids, with Fanny Dango (centre). HAT Archive.
The revival of The Dairymaids, scheduled to run for a fortnight, began on Saturday 27 February 1909 at Her Majesty’s Theatre Sydney before a crowded house. There were several changes to the cast who had appeared in the 1907 Sydney production, including Florence Young as Winifred, Georgie Musgrove as Lady Brundenell (the part previously taken by Clara Clifton), Susie Vaughan in her first appearance with the company as Penelope Pyechase, Andrew Higginson as Sam Brudenell (previously played by Fred Leslie) and W.S. Percy replacing the retired George Laurie as Joe Mivens. Fanny remained as Peggy, confirming her firmly established success and popularity in the part.
When The Dairymaids finished it was replaced by the musical comedy Havana as the season finale in Sydney. Havana, with libretto by George Grossmith and Graeme Hill and lyrics by George Arthurs and Adrian Ross, came to Australia with a glowing endorsement from its staging at the London Gaiety Theatre and J.C. Williamson had engaged Spencer Barry from the Empire Theatre, London to produce the musical which had its Australian premiere at Her Majesty’s Theatre Sydney on Saturday, 13 March 1909, concluding after a short three-week season.
Jean Aylwin, who created the role of Anita in Havana, London, 1908
Flickr
Cast list for the first Australian production of Havana, 1909
National Library of Australia, Canberra
Like many other musicals, it was not the storyline or sub-plots of Havana that held the attention of the audience rather the colourful costumes, humorous dialogue and antics, excellent dancing and catchy songs. Fanny played the part of Anita, a young and pretty cigar seller who had been abandoned by her husband, Bos’un Nix, some seven years earlier and her duet with Bos’un Nix (Victor Gouriet) ‘The Merry Widow and the Gay Deceased’, a clever parody on the Merry Widow, was said to be one of the hits of the production. Fanny’s rendition of ‘My Husband’ and her flirtatious Spanish style pas de deux with W.S. Percy (Reginald Brown the yacht’s boy) were also audience favourites.
The Royal Comic Opera Co’s fourteen week tour of New Zealand opened on 3 April 1909 at the Opera House, Wellington with The Merry Widow, with Fanny playing the role of Fifi for the first time. Other cast members included Andrew Higginson as Danilo, Florence Young as Sonia, Marietta Nash (Mrs. George Lauri) as Praskoia, Victor Gouriet as Baron Popoff, the Marsovian Ambassador in Paris and W.S. Percy as Nisch, messenger to the legation. After fourteen performances of The Merry Widow the Company ended its Wellington season with The Dairymaids and The Girls of Gottenberg.
The New Zealand tour continued with performances at various venues throughout the North and South Islands concluding with a three night season at Invercargill before the Company departed for Tasmania. All performances during the tour attracted enthusiastic audiences, packed houses and favourable press reviews for the productions and individual performances.
Fanny regularly won praise for her performances. When The Dairymaids played in Gisborne she received a glowing review: ‘Miss Fanny Dango fully realised all that was promised in her name. She made a winsome Peggy, danced with subtle grace, and acted with great charm. Her song “Tinker, Tailor, Soldier, Sailor,” was daintily sung and a double encore was demanded.’5 And when The Merry Widow was held at the Theatre Royal Christchurch, it was said that: ‘Miss Fanny Dango is more than a charming danseuse; she is a thorough artist in the poetry of motion. Her dance in the third act was a very fine performance uniting grace and deftness.’6
Fanny had created quite a sensation during a very successful tour of New Zealand, and on the Company’s return to Australia, advertisements for performances of The Merry Widow (in Hobart and Launceston) and The Girls of Gottenberg (in Geelong in late July 1909) advised that Fanny, ‘Australia’s most popular dancer and dainty actress’ would make her first appearance at these venues.
The Hobart Daily Post noted in their review of The Merry Widow that a new duet, ‘A Simple Little Thing’ had been especially introduced into the second act to give Fanny an opportunity to show her excellent dancing skills. It was, they wrote, ‘a welcome interpolation, too, for no more bright and vivacious exponent of the graceful art than the lady mentioned has been seen in Australia’.7
After the Tasmanian run, a three week season opened at Adelaide’s Theatre Royal with The Girls of Gottenberg on 31 July and was run again in mid-August to close the Adelaide season. It was Fanny’s first time in Adelaide and she was warmly welcomed, and in the role of Mitzi, Fanny completely justified her reputation as a talented performer. Reviews noted Fanny’s solos, ‘Mitzi’ and ‘Berlin on the Spree’ as audience favourites, especially the latter number which was backed by a chorus of girls ‘dressed in walking costume.’ Fanny’s duet, ‘Two Little Sausages’ with Victor Gouriet (as Max Moddelkopf), was seen as another audience favourite.
As part of the Adelaide season, the company performed The Merry Widow for 6 nights and a matinee, opening on 7 August. ‘The graceful and blithesome’ Fanny again played Fifi and her duet ‘I’m Such a Simpleton’ with W.S. Percy (a waiter at Maxim’s) was supported with fantastic dancing and the duo received uproarious applause for their dancing in the last act. 8 The Dairymaids followed on 14 August with the season closing a week later with The Girls of Gottenberg.
As with her brief sojourn in the Sydney production of The Duchess of Dantzic, Fanny reappeared in the role of Renee de Saint Merzard when the Company opened their Melbourne season at Her Majesty’s Theatre on 28 August 1909.
The storyline of The Duchess of Dantzic concerns the heroine, Sans Gene, a spirited washer woman who marries sergeant Lefebvre who later becomes Marshal of France and Duke of Dantzic—making our heroine, Duchess of Dantzic. Renee is Napoleon’s Imperial ward and he plans the divorce of the Duke and Duchess and for the Duke to wed Renee. But, Renee is betrothed to Adhemar Vicomte de Bethane (Andrew Higginson) a young nobleman who has been befriended by the Duchess who uses her influence at Court to frustrate Napoleon’s intentions.
The role gave Fanny few opportunities to display her acting. She had one solo ‘Le Petite Corporal’ and only one dance but it was her duet ,‘The Legend Olden’, with Adhemar, a song which tells of their relationship with the Duchess ‘which charmed the audience.’ 9
Fanny Dango as Angela in The Catch of the Season. Australian Performing Arts Collection, Art Centre Melbourne.‘Clever and charming’ was the catchcry of most critics of The Catch of the Season which had its Australian premiere at Her Majesty’s Theatre Melbourne on 2 October 1909 (later playing in Sydney, Perth, Kalgoorlie and Adelaide). The Bulletin, however, was not so generous and gave a less than encouraging review, describing the show as one of the least polished, oddest and most unoriginal of Williamson’s many musicals.
The musical comedy was based on Cinderella and reviews generally acknowledged Fanny as Angela Crystal (Cinderella) as an unqualified success who carried the show, well supported by Andrew Higginson as the Duke (Prince Charming). A review in Table Talk was full of praise for Fanny’s performance:
‘As Angela, (she) has a part which gives her scope to show her special abilities in a convincing way, and, in consequence she makes it stand out like a “star” part. She in turn, imbues it with pathos, piquancy, charm and unaffected daintiness; she sings sweetly, and looks charming. Altogether, her Angela is a very pleasing little personage … ’ 10
Fanny’s numbers in the performance included ‘Bunny’ with an accompanying dance, ‘I’ll be a Good Little Girl, I Will’, ‘Suppose’ a duet with Andrew Higginson, and a rollicking Irish song and jig, ‘Mollie O’Halloran’ which she performed at the Duke’s coming of age Ball which she attended in the guise of Mollie O’Halloran an Irish lass. Her Irish brogue was thought acceptable.
After its Melbourne run, the show went to Sydney for the Christmas attraction at Her Majesty’s Theatre, opening on 18 December before a crowded house which warmly welcomed Fanny as the modern-day Cinderella. There were some cast changes for the Sydney production, notably Fanny’s sister Lydia Flopp 11 who appeared as Sophia, one of the spiteful stepsisters, Florence Vie as Lady Caterham (Fairy Godmother) and Fanny Bauer whose guest appearance was her first in Sydney after an absence of 7 years. Bauer had no part in the show but appeared in one scene as a guest where she sang Andre Messenger’s ‘I am waiting’ and on another night sang Gomez, ‘Mia Piccirella. Bauer had returned to Australia in November 1909 following a successful operatic career in Europe, and had been engaged by Williamson. Her guest appearance was used as an opportunity to introduce her to the Australian public.
Fanny was again the star attraction and she received favourable reviews for her performance. The Sunday Times wrote: ‘Miss Dango is at her best. The little lady looks well, acts well, speaks her lines well and dances well and, without being a first-grade singer gets just the right amount of point and emphasis into her vocal numbers’.12
Perhaps tired of negative reviews of her singing voice, Fanny made a spirited response when interviewed by the Melbourne journal, Table Talk in October 1909:
They are very exacting and critical out here (Australia) in regard to singing—rather too critical I think. I am a soubrette, act a little, sing a little and dance a little: but I do not pretend to be a singer. Yet here they expect one to be so. I do not think that anyone who dances much can be a good singer also. The voices here, though are wonderful.
She also referred to her role in Catch of the Season and the effect the large theatres and stages in Australia have on voice quality:
Your theatres are very large. Now in London “The Catch of the Season” was played in a tiny theatre and the actors were in much closer touch with their audience. It requires in my idea, to be played lightly and delicately, and it is difficult to do that with such a large stage and in such a large theatre and make it tell. In the first act when I go up to read Cinderella, I have quite a walk, and I feel so far away. While in the London production it was just an ordinary room.
And as a parting dig at her critics, she concluded:
My voice has certainly grown stronger since I have been in Australia.13
The Merry Widow was revived for a short run at Her Majesty’s Theatre on 30 October, coinciding with the Melbourne race season and its appeal with Melbourne theatre goers was evident from the large and enthusiastic audiences. In this production Florence Young played Sonia, the merry widow, Andrew Higginson was Prince Danilo and Fanny was again cast as Fifi. Fanny had few speaking lines but had two dances with Maurice Dudley (Nisch, messenger to the legation) which were thought in ‘her best style, bright, light and graceful.’
The production was also run in Sydney in the new year, but in a late cast change, Fanny was rested and Tilly Woodlock played the part of Fifi. The year had been a particularly busy one for Fanny, the number of productions, the quick turnaround of the Company’s repertoire and the amount of travel involved, including a tour of New Zealand, in staging the performances placed strain and fatigue on the actors and Fanny was one of the casualties. A month later, however, Fanny was back on stage.
Leslie Holland, Reginald Roberts, Fanny Dango & Florence Young in The Lady Dandies. From The Australasian (Melbourne), 27 November 1909, p.2.
The impatience of Melbourne theatre goers was finally satisfied when The Lady Dandies commenced on Saturday 20 November as the season finale at Her Majesty’s Theatre. The Company was considered stronger than when the show was performed in Sydney in 1908. Rosina Buckmann a young New Zealand vocalist in her debut with the Company played Illyrine, Fanny, who had previously played Illyrine, was cast as Egle, the wife of Des Gouttieres and Florence Young was again cast as Ladioska the chief of the Dandies.
The character of Illyrine was vocally challenging and the press considered Buckmann’s performance a resounding success, noting her splendid soprano voice, its purity, fineness and range. Qualities which critics had found wanting in Fanny’s 1908 performance.14
The part of Egle required little from Fanny but her dancing was again applauded by the critics and her dance and duets with Arthur Hunter (Des Gouttieres) ‘I Always Come Back to You’ and ‘The Coquette’ were well received by the audience; ‘her dances are delights and cause a furore.’
On 5 February 1910 The Royal Comic Opera Co., revived The Girls from Gottenberg at Her Majesty’s Sydney. In the show which ran only for a week, Fanny repeated her previous success as Mitzi, the Innkeepers daughter; she was a ‘bouncing ball of fun and brightness’ endearing herself with the audience with her numbers they well-remembered.
Fanny’s next role, and arguably her finest, was as Franzi Steingruber the youthful leader and violinist of a Viennese ladies’ band in Oscar Straus’ operetta, A Waltz Dream. The role of Franzi, wrote the Age, ‘was a part soubrettes often dream about, but seldom get; both bright and pathetic, with plenty of singing and dialogue’.15 It was an ideal part for Fanny and she made the most of the opportunity.
A Waltz Dream was staged for the first time in Australia at Her Majesty’s Theatre, Sydney on 12 February 1910 (then transferred to the Theatre Royal in early March and later performed in Adelaide, Melbourne in May and a short run in Brisbane in August). The production was beautifully staged and costumed, with outstanding performances by Florence Young as Princess Helena and Reginald Roberts as Lieutenant Nicholas (Nikki) and fine supporting roles by Langford Kirby as Count Lothar, Claude Bantock as Prince Joachim (Bertie Wright in Melbourne), Florence Vie as a band member and Fanny.
Lily Elsie, who created the role of Franzi in A Waltz Dream in London
National Portrait Gallery, London
Fanny Dango as Franzi and Langford Kirby as Count Lothar
From Punch (Melbourne), 19 May 1910, p.692
The comic opera involves the ceremonial marriage of Princess Helena of Flausenthurn to Nicholas (Niki) an Austrian Lieutenant for reasons of State and to further the line of succession. Unhappy with this role, Niki rebels and on his wedding night visits a garden restaurant where a ladies’ band is playing and flirts outrageously with Franzi, engaging in a fervent waltz; Franzi is besotted, the affair is witnessed by Count Lothar and Helena’s father, Joachim and there is talk of divorce. Accepting that the relationship is not to be, Franzi forsakes her love interest and helps the Princess win back her consort. Franzi is heartbroken, her only consolation being a memory of the most lingering stage kiss on record.
Among the many songs and duets in the piece, Fanny impressed audiences and critics with her rendition of ‘Princess Helena’ and ‘That’s the Life for Me’, her duet with Roberts, ‘My Dear Little Maiden’, and her humorous duet ‘Piccolo Piccolo’ with Langford Kirby. Fanny’s fervent waltz with Roberts was encored several times.
The long kiss: Hal Gye’s impression of Fanny Dango and Reginald Roberts as Franzi and Nikki in A Waltz Dream.
From The Bulletin (Sydney), 30 June 1910, p.9.
Somewhat out of the ordinary, critiques of Fanny’s performance as Franzi focused on her acting, more so than her dancing and singing, although these were intrinsic in her role play, and generally she was applauded for her interpretation of the character; her portrayal of a range of emotions from elation to sorrow was thought compelling. Although to the contrary, the Sydney Morning Herald thought her performance was a ‘colorless, superficial reading of the part’.16
When the show played in Adelaide in the May, the Evening Journal noted: ‘Miss Fanny Dango was absolutely bewitching as Franzi, and she scored all along the line. Her acting in the magnificent finale of the second act was full of intensity and real power’.17 The Bulletin review of the Melbourne performance also applauded Fanny’s performance—‘Miss Dango has never elsewhere been quite as well placed as in the part of the girl with the fiddle. Nature specially designed her for it … she plays the character like a—like a Viennese band.’18
At the conclusion of the Sydney season of A Waltz Dream the company travelled to Perth for a three week season beginning 26 March, with performances of The Merry Widow, Girls of Gottenberg, The Dairymaids and Catch of the Season. The Company also did a ‘goldfields’ season with performances in Kalgoorlie and Boulder.
While in Perth the members of the Royal Comic Opera Co., demonstrated their every-ready support for charity events by their active involvement in the organisation and running of the Grand Theatrical Carnival on Saturday 9 April. The Carnival was held to raise funds in aid of the crew and Third-class passengers of the wrecked S.S. Pericles, the Perth Children’s Hospital and Home for Waifs. Program activities included a Costume Burlesque cricket match between the Company and the Commercial Travellers Association and a horse race—‘The Gottenberg Cup’ with Leslie, Bantock, Roberts and Gouriet among the jockeys. Fanny along with Florence Young and other members of the Company ran stalls, performed concert items and assisted with afternoon tea.
The generosity of theatrical persons was again to the fore In early June when Fanny was one of many members of the Royal Comic Opera Co., to perform at a Theatrical Charity Matinee at Her Majesty’s, Melbourne in aid of the comic opera benefit fund. The packed program included Act 2 of The Merry Widow, a dramatic scene by Hugh Ward, Grace Palotta and Reginald Whyham, a rendition by Florence Vie of ‘In My Time’ from The Orchid, and ‘Tally Ho’ from Dorothy by Florence Young. Fanny’s song and dance was ‘Berlin on the Spree’ from The Girls of Gottenberg, an item which had been an audience favourite in previous performances of the show.
Characters from The Orchid by Harry Julius
From Theatrical Caricatures by Harry Julius, 1912
Langford Kirby and Florence Vie in The Orchid
From The Sun (Sydney), 22 August 1910, p.7
The policy of the Williamson’s management to revive some of the Royal Comic Opera’s most popular recent comic operas for short seasons began when the ever popular The Orchid was greeted by enthusiastic audiences when it played at Her Majesty’s Melbourne on 2 July 1910, His Majesty’s Brisbane on 6 August and Sydney’s Her Majesty’s on 20 August.
There were several new comers to the Company, and to the production since The Orchid last played some four years earlier, including Bertie Wright who appeared as Meakin, Langford Kirby as Guy Serymgour and Florence Vie as Caroline Vokins, all who had previously played these roles at the London Gaiety Theatre. Fanny, in her first performance in the musical, played Lady Violet Anstruther, the principal student at the Horticulture College.
The Melbourne reviews generally praised Fanny’s performance, typically commenting that she scored principally in her songs, and that she was simply delightful as Lady Violet Ansthuther; bright, fascinating, and so absolutely dainty and charming. The Weekly Times (Melbourne) noted that Fanny’s version of ‘Little Mary’ with her own piquancy was ‘one of the best remembered if not the most meritorious of the piece.’19
On the Sydney show, the Sydney Sun commented that Fanny’s solos and dance duet with Fred Leslie were delightful, and that the pair did a vast deal towards the success of the revival.20 Although the Melbourne Punch saw Fanny’s performance differently. Whilst acknowledging Fanny had a few good moments in the ‘Liza Ann’ song and dance with Fred Leslie and scored honours for ‘Little Mary’, the reviewer thought she was out of her element as Lady Violet Ansthuther.21
Following The Orchid revival in Melbourne, the next of the revivals was The Girls of Gottenberg which opened at Her Majesty’s Theatre Melbourne on Saturday 24 July for a short season. All the old favourites were soundly applauded, especially Fanny for her song ‘Berlin on the Spree’. Florence Vie as the buxom Clementine and Bertie Wright as Max Moddelkopf were both outstanding and embraced by the audience. Although the Bulletin, in an unflattering critique, thought the principals wanting, singling out Fanny—‘somewhat pathetic is the slight little Mitzi of little Miss Dango’.22
From Melbourne, the Company moved north, and Fanny made her first appearance in Brisbane on 6 August when the Company performed The Orchid at His Majesty’s Theatre and the following week she played Franzi in A Waltz Dream.
A week before the Sydney season of The Orchid finished, Fanny made her farewell appearance in Australia on 15 September 1910, and was applauded with floral bouquets and gifts from fellow cast members; so ended this Soubrette’s stage career in Australia.
Fanny Dango—as Renee in The Duchess of Dantzic. Photo by Lafayette.
From Table Talk (Melbourne), 16 September 1909, p.22
A month later Fanny was bound for England on board the RMS Osterley, travelling as Fanny Rudge. Prior to leaving Melbourne, Claude Bantock on behalf of the Royal Comic Opera Co., presented Fanny with a set of dressing table silver ware in appreciation of her time with the Company and wished her all the best for her forthcoming marriage to Sam Mackay—the couple married in London on 29 November 1910. Sam Mackay was a wealthy pastoralist, businessman, racehorse owner and breeder of thoroughbred horses. He had vast property holdings in the north-west of Western Australia and property in Victoria.
From her first appearance with the Royal Comic Opera Co., as Peggy in the 1907 production of The Dairymaids, Fanny Dango became a favourite of Australian theatre patrons. Her roles as a lively, flirtatious young woman was often the focus of press comments and her coquettishness appealed to the critics, and the public. Fanny was an exceptional dancer and an animated, vivacious actress whose commitment to a role never waned. Her singing voice was not strong, something she acknowledged herself—‘I do not pretend to be a singer’—but was obviously considered adequate for her musical comedy roles.
Fanny’s three years on the Australian stage were characterised in many words, in many reviews, but it is two comments which best capture the overall sentiment for her—‘We haven’t had an actress of her class for many a day with the sparkle and spontaneity of free and flashing Fanny Dango’ and Fanny ‘is the most mercurial sprite of the Australian stage’.23
Endnotes
1. The Bulletin (Melbourne), 21 January 1909, p.9
2. Table Talk (Melbourne), 31 December 1908, p.18
3. Punch (Melbourne), 25 February 1909, p.33
4. Dominion, 14 April 1909, p.35.
5. Gisborne Times, 14 May 1909, p.4
6. Press, 14 June 1909, p.8
7. Daily Post (Hobart), 23 July 1909, p.6
8. Advertiser (Adelaide) 9 August 1909, p.5
9. Advertiser (Adelaide) 9 August 1909, p.5
10. Table Talk (Melbourne), 7 October 1909, p.23
11. Lydia (a musical comedy performer mainly with the Edwardes’ company) had arrived from England in late November 1909 to visit and holiday with Fanny. On arrival she was immediately engaged by J.C. Williamson to play Sophia in The Catch of the Season – a minor part with one song, ‘I Think an Awful Lot of You.’
12. Sunday Times, 26 December 1909, p.2
13. Table Talk (Melbourne), 21 October 4 1909, p. 13
14. Rosina Buckmann debuted in the 1906 production of The Moorish Maid at the Palace Theatre Sydney. She also had considerable success on the Australian operatic stage. See also, Story of the Palace Theatre, Part 7, Elisabeth Kumm. Theatre Heritage Australia, On Stage Magazine, December 2022
15. Age (Melbourne), 23 May 1910, p.8
16. Sydney Morning Herald, 14 February 1910, p.3
17. Evening Journal (Adelaide) 10 May 1910, p.2
18. The Bulletin (Sydney), 23 June 1910, p.9
19. The Bulletin (Sydney), 23 June 1910, p.9
20. Sun (Sydney), 22 August 1910, p.7
21. Punch (Melbourne), 25 August 1910, p.37
22. The Bulletin (Sydney), 28 July 1910, p.9
23. Daily Herald (Adelaide), 14 May 1910, p.6 and Herald (Melbourne), 23 May 1910, p.4
References
Harry Julius, Theatrical Caricatures, NSW Bookstall Ltd., Sydney, 1912
Nick Murphy, Elsie Mackay, Forgotten Australian Actors (website)
Frank Van Straten, Florence Young and the Golden Years of Australian Musical Theatre, Beleura, Mornington, Vic., 2009
Papers Past (New Zealand)
Trove (Australia)
