The Bunyip (musical) explained

The Bunyip
Subtitle:	The enchantment of fairy princess Wattle Blossom
Music:	Herbert De Pinna Vince Courtney Fred Monument Marsh Little James Kendis
Lyrics:	Herbert De Pinna Vince Courtney Fred Monument Marsh Little James Kendis
Basis:	Original Australiana by Ella Airlie
Productions:	1916 Adelaide 1917 Sydney 1917 Melbourne 1918 Brisbane 1920 Perth 1922 Adelaide 1924 Melbourne 1924 Sydney

The Bunyip, also known by the longer title The Enchantment of Fairy Princess Wattle Blossom, was written by Ella Palzier Campbell (aka Ella Airlie). The pantomime was a highly successful musical comedy that toured Australia for a decade within Fuller Brothers theatre circuit.^[1] The show was produced by Sydney entrepreneur Nat Philips. The premiere of the show ran for at least 97 performances^[2] and was revived several times over the following decade.

Production history

Music was supplied by a number of Australian stage personalities including Vince Courtney, Herbert De Pinna and James Kendis. A Melbourne National Gallery student P. Cohen was enlisted to paint the sets with Australian flowers,^[3] namely wattle and waratah, on costumes also.^[4]

Venues

• 1916 Grand Opera House, Sydney
• 1917 Princess Theatre, Melbourne
• 1917 Majestic Theatre, Adelaide^[5]
• 1918 Brisbane Empire^[6]
• 1918 Victoria Theatre, Newcastle^[7]
• 1924 Sydney Hippodrome

Synopsis

The story opens with a bushfire in which all the bush creatures are bought out into the open. Then it deals with the wanderings of princess Wattle Blossom, who falls into the hands of the Bush Gnomes, a proud race with a terrible way of doing things. The Lord High Gnome decrees that the Princess shall be turned into a bunyip, and this transformation takes place on the stage.^[8] The fairy princess is then rescued by the principal boy from the race of bush gnomes. A well-received stage effect was a shadow play of girls apparently disrobing behind a backlit screen, over which the (apparently) removed clothing was thrown.^{[9] [10]}

The play relied heavily on comic stereotypes of the time, including a Chinese cook, bumbling Jewish clowns, fierce Aboriginal warriors, and a drunken Australian lout – all contending with Wattle Blossom, the fairy princess in the original story.

Musical numbers

• Bunyip / words & music by Herbert de Pinna
• Wattle blossom time in Australia / words and music by Fred Monument; arranged by Geo. Hurdle
• For you / words & music by Marsh Little
• Nulla nulla / words & music by Marsh Little
• I love you / words & music by Herbert de Pinna
• Mean old moon / Ella Airlie
• Back to Kosciusko / words and music by Ella Airlie
• Joan / words & music by Marsh Little
• Bills' enlisted / words by R. Boyer and H. de Pinna; music by Herbert de Pinna
• If Captain Cook could come to life to-day / words by Con Moreni; music by Nellie Kolle & Con Moreni
• Sonny mine / words & music by Herbert de Pinna
• Down in Australia / words & music by Marsh Little
• Nathan : sung by Roy Rene / by James Kendis
• My Chinee girl : the favourite one-step song / words and music by Vince Courtney
• Grey hair grey eyes / words by Nat Phillips; music by Bert Reid
• Safety first / words and music by Henry T. Hayes – Dancers drilled by a child actor^[11]
• Mother waratah / words & music by Marsh Little
• Bunyip waltzes / arr. by Albert Evelyn
• Pierrot and Pierrette / lyric by Jean Lenox and Ray Sterling; music by Leo Edwards
• Swinging along to Henty / words & music by Henry B. Hayes; ukulele arr. by P. P. McGrath using Bishaw's method
• All I want is a cottage, some roses, and you / by Chas. K. Harris

Characters

• Wattle Blossom – a fairy princess
• Wattle Blossom's attendant
• Chief Gnome
• Joan – principal 'girl'
• Jack – principal 'boy'
• Squatter Hadfield
• Mrs Wiggins
• Ah Fat (Chinese cook) played by Vince Courtney^[12]
• Swaggie swagman
• Extras – An Aboriginal corroboree and bush sprite dancers^{[3] [13]}
• Arthur – a halfwit
• Tower – a lofty fellow
• Comedy duo 'Stiffy and Mo'

Cast

The cast changed across several venues. For example, in Adelaide the crowd was treated to a boomerang thrower safely tossing weapons above their heads^[14]

• Nat Philips (producer) and Roy Rene played Stiffy and Mo.^[14]
• Peter Brooks originally played the Swaggie,^[15] but was replaced by drag Swagman impersonator Nellie Kolle.^{[16] [17]}
• Villiers Arnold played the Gnome in the Sydney production at the grand opera house^[3]
• Pearl Ladd played the bunyip at the Sydney performance^[18]
• Ella Airlie (the writer) played Jack the principal boy opposite Queenie Paul as Joan the principal female lead.^[16] Dan Dunbar and Zoe Wencke joined the team later.^[13]
• Roy Rene continued the comic character 'Mo' he had developed in vaudeville^[19]
• Caddie Franks played the transformation into a Bunyip^[20]

Critical reception

The play was embraced with patriotic fervour.^[21] From 1917, the show drew crowded houses.^[22] The theme song was adopted by schools in New South Wales and sales of the sheet music were phenomenal.^[4]

The press was unaffected by a typical Australian workers dispute between management and two stage hands who objected to the behaviour of a backstage colleague.^[23]

Notes and References

1. Web site: State Library Victoria - Viewer .
2. News: In the Theatres . . 775 . New South Wales, Australia . 3 February 1918 . 16 November 2019 . 16 . National Library of Australia.
3. News: Bush Fire and Bunyip . . 716 . New South Wales, Australia . 17 December 1916 . 11 November 2019 . 18 . National Library of Australia.
4. News: Filmland, Vaudeville, and The Stage. . . LII . 14329 . Adelaide . 26 May 1917 . 11 November 2019 . 4 . National Library of Australia.
5. News: 2 June 1917 . Majestic Theatre . LIX . 11 . . 18,295 . Adelaide . 11 November 2019 . National Library of Australia.
6. News: 3 August 1918 . The Bunyip . 8 . . 14,256 . Brisbane . 11 November 2019 . National Library of Australia.
7. Web site: Ella Airlie . 2024-04-18 . AusStage.
8. News: Musical and Dramatic Notes . . XXXII . 4,519 . Western Australia . 25 September 1916 . 11 November 2019 . 5 . National Library of Australia.
9. News: The Theatreland . . 1972 . New South Wales, Australia . 24 December 1924 . 11 November 2019 . 15 . National Library of Australia.
10. News: Good-Bye to "The Bunyip" . . 17971 . New South Wales, Australia . 24 January 1925 . 11 November 2019 . 5 . National Library of Australia. Includes illustration attributed to "Emil Mercier", possibly Emile Mercier's first published work.
11. News: The Bunyip . . 1203 . New South Wales, Australia . 3 January 1925 . 11 November 2019 . 5 . National Library of Australia.
12. News: Nights Off N. . . XXXVI . 74 . New South Wales, Australia . 31 December 1924 . 11 November 2019 . 10 . National Library of Australia.
13. News: Fullers' Pantomime . . 2028 . Sydney . 14 December 1924 . 11 November 2019 . 20 . National Library of Australia.
14. News: Fuller's Pantomime "The Bunyip" . . LXXXII . 22,017 . Adelaide . 2 June 1917 . 11 November 2019 . 9 . National Library of Australia.
15. News: Advertising . . 195 . Western Australia . 16 May 1925 . 11 November 2019 . 3 . National Library of Australia.
16. News: Fuller's Pantomime "The Bunyip" . . LII . 14335 . Adelaide . 2 June 1917 . 11 November 2019 . 5 . National Library of Australia.
17. News: "The Bunyip" Pantomime . . 101 . Melbourne . 20 December 1917 . 11 November 2019 . 3 . National Library of Australia.
18. News: Bush Fire and Bunyip . . 63 . Melbourne . 30 March 1917 . 11 November 2019 . 9 . National Library of Australia.
19. News: The Bunyip . . 2029 . New South Wales, Australia . 21 December 1924 . 11 November 2019 . 3 . National Library of Australia.
20. News: Picture Patter and Theatrical Topics . . 4 . 42 . South Australia . 1 June 1917 . 11 November 2019 . 3 . National Library of Australia.
21. News: The Bunyip . . 14,053 . New South Wales, Australia . 22 December 1924 . 11 November 2019 . 11 . National Library of Australia.
22. News: "Bunyip" Pantomime Artists performing at the Majestic . . XVII . 1009 . Adelaide . 13 June 1917 . 11 November 2019 . 13 . National Library of Australia.
23. News: Scenes Behind the Scenes . . 13,005 . Victoria, Australia . 5 February 1918 . 12 November 2019 . 6 . National Library of Australia.