The Phillip Street Theatre (succeeded by the Phillip Theatre) was a popular and influential Australian theatre and theatrical company, located in Phillip Street in Sydney that was active from 1954 and 1971 that became well known for its intimate satirical revue productions.
History Founding William Orr was a Scottish-born impresario from Glasgow who had a background as a director and theatre administrator in London before coming to Australia. Orr felt that there was a market in Australia for the new British theatre craze, the intimate topical satirical revue, and he pioneered the format in Sydney during 1954.
Actor Gordon Chater praised Orr as a champion of Australian theatrical talent:
"To this day I think Bill Orr should have been honoured by this country for creating the first post-war entirely professional theatre employing all Australians – the dancers, musicians, actors, lyricists and composers were all Australian."Rob Johnson & David Smiedt, Boom-Boom: A Century of Australian Comedy (Hodder & Stoughton, Sydney, 1999), p.131
Performers Between 1954 and 1971, Orr promoted a series at the Phillip Street Theatre that became known as the 'Phillip Street Revues' which featured many famous Australian performers.Mavis Bramston Reloaded – History – "From Stage to TV and Back Again: A brief overview of intimate revue in Australia"
List of performers Actor Ray Barrett Robina Beard (sister of Chris Bearde) Wendy Blacklock Noeline Brown Gordon Chater Ruth Cracknell Barry Creyton Gloria Dawn Alastair Duncan Judi Farr Barry Humphries Dawn Lake Margo Lee Bobby Limb Reg Livermore John Meillon Kevin Miles Patricia Pearson Jill Perryman June Salter Bud Tingwell
Productions In 1953 Orr premiered a small revue, Metropolitan Merry-Go-Round at the Metropolitan Church Hall in Reiby Place, Sydney. This production marked the first professional credit for writer John McKellar, Jerry Donovan and Lance Mulcahy, the three writer-performers had met at school and developed their writing skills in university revues. The trio worked together on several subsequent Phillip St productions and McKellar became the driving force behind most of the Phillip St revues of the '50s and '60sMalcolm Brown, "Writer made us laugh at ourselves." Sydney Morning Herald, 16 September 2010
Also at this time, British-born actor Gordon Chater was appearing in the Sydney production of Hugh Hastings' play Seagulls Over Sorrento. Chater's character did not appear in that play until the end of Act II, and because it was being sent up in the Metropolitan revue, Orr managed to convince Chater to come over to the Metropolitan to introduce the sketch, which was in the first half of the revue, giving Chater enough time to make it back for his performance in Sorrento.Johnson & Smiedt, 1999, p.130–131
Orr's next revue at the Metropolitan, Maid in Egypt was again written by McKellar, Donovan and Mulcahy, and starred Leonard Teale and Patty Martin.John Singer, quoted in Charles "Bud" Tingwell's official website
Phillip Street Theatre Year Title Location Actors 1953 Metropolitan Merry-Go-Round Metropolitan Theatre Alastair Duncan, David Nettheim 1953 Seagulls Over Sorrento Metropolitan Theatre Gordon Chater 1953 Maid in Egypt Metropolitan Theatre Leonard Teale & Patty Martin 1954, 1955 Hit and Run Workers' Education Hall Ray Barrett, Lola Brooks, Gordon Chater, John Ewart, June Salter, Bud Tingwell, Bettina Welch 1954, 1955 Top of the Bill Workers' Education Hall Bud Tingwell, Margo Lee, Gordon Chater 1955 Hat Trick Workers' Education Hall Aileen Britton, Max Oldaker, June Salter 1955 Hamlet Workers' Education Hall Allan Trevor, John Meillon, Owen Weingott 1955 The Duenna Workers' Education Hall Gordon Chater, Ruth Cracknell, Geoffrey Chard, Shirley Summers 1955, 1956, 1957 Happy Returns Workers' Education Hall Ray Barrett, Gordon Chater, Norman Coburn, Margo Lee, Terry McDermott, John Meillon, Madge Ryan, June Salter 1955, 1956 Two to One Workers' Education Hall Max Oldaker, Wendy Blacklock, Barry Humphries Olympic Hostess Workers' Education Hall Barry Humphries 1956, 1957 Around the Loop Workers' Education Hall Max Oldaker, Gordon Chater, Wendy Blacklock, Barry Humphries, June Salter 1956 Mr. and Mrs Workers' Education Hall Barry Humphries 1956, 1958, 1959 Alice in Wonderland Workers' Education Hall Robina Beard, John Bluthal, Peter Kenna, Max Meldrum 1957 Gordon Chater Workers' Education Hall Gordon Chater, Reg Livermore 1957 The Willow Pattern Plate Workers' Education Hall John Bluthal, Ben Gabriel, Reg Livermore, Leon Thau, Owen Weingott 1957, 1958 Cross Section Workers' Education Hall Reg Livermore, John Meillon, Ruth Cracknell, June Salter 1958, 1959 Bats Workers' Education Hall John Bluthal, Ronald Frazer, 1959 The Birthday Show Workers' Education Hall John Bluthal, Ronald Frazer, Jill Perryman 1959 Meet Joyce Grenfell Workers' Education Hall Joyce Grenfell 1959 Hey Diddle Diddle Workers' Education Hall Robina Beard, Gordon Chater, Judi Farr 1959 A Ride on a Broomstick Workers' Education Hall Robina Beard, Gordon Chater 1960 Phillip Street Revue Workers' Education Hall Wendy Blacklock, Ronald Frazer, Peter Kenna 1960 Mistress Money Workers' Education Hall Robina Beard, Wendy Blacklock, Gordon Chater, Judi Farr
Phillip Theatre Year Title Location Actors 1961 Out on a Limb Australian Hall Bettina Welch, Bobby Limb, Dawn Lake 1961 Stop Press Australian Hall 1961 Yes Please! 1961-62 Alice in Wonderland 1962 What's New? 1962 Beyond the Fringe 1962 A Wish is a Dream 1962 At It Again Australian Hall 1963 Flaming Youth Australian Hall 1063 Do You Mind! 1963 The Private Ear Gordon Chater, John Bell, Max Osbiston 1963 The Public Eye Gordon Chater, John Bell, Max Osbiston 1964 The Importance of Being Oscar Australian Hall Micheál Mac Liammóir 1964 I Must Be Talking to My Friends Micheál Mac Liammóir 1964 Rattle of a Simple Man John Meillon, June Salter 1964 Breakfast with Julia 1964 Is Australia Really Necessary? 1964 Santa's Christmas Party 1964 Beyond the Fringe Australian Hall Alastair Duncan, John Ewart 1965 The Knack Reg Livermore, Tom Oliver, Peter Whitford 1965 A Severed Head 1965 The Tintookies 1965-66 A Cup Of Tea, A Bex and A Good Lie Down Australian Hall 1966 The Fantasticks Ron Shand, Willie Fennell, Frank Lloyd 1966 Private Yuk Objects 1966 Luv Alastair Duncan 1966 Alice in Wonderland 1967 The Sound of Morley 1967 Hail Gloria Fitzpatrick 1967 There Will Be an Interval of 15 Minutes 1967 All By Myself (Anna Russell) 1967 But I Wouldn't Want to Live There 1968 Relatively Speaking 1968 The Boy Friend 1969 Your Own Thing 1969 Lie Back and Enjoy It 1969 Candy Stripe Balloon 1969 Not Now, Darling 1970 The Bandwagon 1970 Emlyn Williams as Charles Dickens 1970 When We Are Married 1970 Alice in Wonderland 1971 The Legend of King O'Malley 1971 Come Live With Me 1971 Who Killed Santa Claus?
Second encore Year Title Location Actors 1980 Hal: Aspects of Henry IV Pt.1 Workers' Education Hall 1980 Puss in Boots Workers' Education Hall 1980 Under Milk Wood Workers' Education Hall 1980 Little Red Riding Hood Workers' Education Hall 1980 Festival of Sydney Playwrights 1980 Glad Bags Workers' Education Hall 1981 When in Rome 1981 Hammer 1981 Five Minutes, Mr Klein 1981 The Centenarian 1981 You're a Good Man, Charlie Brown 1981 Two for a Theatre Workers' Education Hall 1981 Smoking is a Health Hazard Workers' Education Hall Max Gillies 1981 Scanlan Workers' Education Hall Max Gillies 1981 Dick Whittington and His Cat Workers' Education Hall 1981 The Stripper's Progress Workers' Education Hall 1981 Blood of the Lamb Workers' Education Hall 1981 Flexitime Workers' Education Hall 1981, 1984 Goldilocks and the Three Bears Workers' Education Hall 1982 Indian Summer Workers' Education Hall 1982 Conundra Workers' Education Hall 1982 I've Come about the Suicide Workers' Education Hall 1982 The Right Man Workers' Education Hall 1982 The Anniversary Workers' Education Hall 1982 Sleeping Beauty Workers' Education Hall 1982 God's Favorite Workers' Education Hall 1982, 1984 Jack and the Beanstalk Workers' Education Hall 1982 Cowardy Custard Workers' Education Hall 1982 Cinderella Workers' Education Hall 1983 Children of a Lesser God Workers' Education Hall 1983 The First Night of Pygmalion Workers' Education Hall 1983 Mother Goose Workers' Education Hall 1983 Macbeth Workers' Education Hall 1983 Babes in Toyland Workers' Education Hall 1983 Sister Mary Ignatius Explains It All for You Workers' Education Hall 1983 The Actor's Nightmare Workers' Education Hall 1983, 1986 Aladdin and His Magic Lamp Workers' Education Hall 1984, 1985 The Removalists Workers' Education Hall 1984 Us or Them Workers' Education Hall 1984. 1987 Little Red Riding Hood Workers' Education Hall 1984 The Cake Man Workers' Education Hall 1984, 1985, 1988 The Shifting Heart Workers' Education Hall 1984, 1985, 1987 The Diary of Anne Frank Workers' Education Hall 1985 An Evening with Queen Victoria Workers' Education Hall 1985, 1987 The Glass Menagerie Workers' Education Hall 1985, 1986, 1987 The Club Workers' Education Hall Mark Butler, Tom Considine, Kevin Healy, Peter Phelps, Kit Taylor 1986, 1987 Hamlet Workers' Education Hall 1986, 1988 Pygmalion Workers' Education Hall 1986 Three Little Pigs Workers' Education Hall 1987-88 Whose Life is it Anyway? Workers' Education Hall 1987 The Old Woman Who Lived in a Shoe Workers' Education Hall 1988, 1989 Educating Rita Workers' Education Hall Terence Donovan, Amanda Muggleton 1988 Puss in Boots Workers' Education Hall 1988 Cinderella Workers' Education Hall
Creation of the Phillip Street Theatre In 1954 Orr and his partner Eric Duckworth were given the use of the Workers' Education Hall in Phillip Street, Sydney, as a theatre, and they renamed it the Phillip Street Theatre. It was here that Orr staged his next revue, Top of the Bill (1954), written by McKellar, Donovan and Mulcahy and featuring Bud Tingwell, Margo Lee and an (unknown) American actor, with Chater making a guest appearance in each half of the show. During rehearsals the American actor repeatedly turned up drunk, so he was sacked a week before the premiere and Chater was asked to step into the role. The revue included a sketches about the Petrov Affair, with Chater and Tingwell as David Jones floorwalkers and Chater in a solo turn as Australian dress designer "Pierre of Balmain" (a play on words that conflated the French fashion house Pierre Balmain and the Sydney suburb of Balmain, which was at that time a run-down working-class enclave). Orr planned to stage three shows a week, but the new revue proved a great success—within days they were playing six shows a week plus Friday and Saturday matinees, and in his memoir Chater recounted that "there were queues around the corner of Phillip Street down to Castlereagh,Johnson & Smiedt, 1999, p.131 and the production ran for two months."
Orr established a board of directors for the Phillip Street Theatre that included author Morris West, journalist Betty Best, charity fundraiser Nola Dekyvere and (later) lawyer John Kerr. Despite the success of Top of the Bill and its follow-up Hat Trick (1955) the board decided that the next show would be a straight production of Hamlet, which flopped. This was followed by a production of Sheridan's comedy The Duenna, set to music by Julian Slade and directed by British director Lionel Harris, who had been brought to Australia to direct a local production that featured visiting British actors Lewis Casson, Sybil Thorndike, Ralph Richardson and (his wife) Meriel Forbes. Harris asked Chater to play the role of Mendoza and also cast the young Ruth Cracknell. The production was well-received but it was terminated in the middle of its run by the hall's owners, the Workers' Educational Association (WEA), who took legal action against the theatre company to regain use of the hall.Johnson & Smiedt, 1999, p.141-142