Two typed copies of notes titled 'Theatre on the Goldfields' by Mr. Frank Cusack. Notes mention the early theatres on the Goldfields, the actors, actresses and singers, owners and places where the theatres were. Also mentioned are some of the plays that were performed.entertainment, theatre, bendigo, theatre on the goldfields, mr frank cusack, john hawkins, bulwer lytton, 'lady of lyons', the theatre royal, gregg, yates, stark, carncross's royal exchange restaurant, the argus, the casion, charles thatcher, burton's theatre, c h rignold, george rignold, royal victoria theatre, the princess, the criterion, walsh and fawcett, george fawcett rowe, fawcett rowe, lola montez, henry coleman, madame carilly, the advertiser, victoria reef, william kelly, g v brooke, burralls assembly rooms, nicholls assembly rooms, royal hotel, shamrock concert hall, bendigo hotel, billy heffernan, john crowely, mrs hancock, miss urie, m langlaise, sarah flower, madame caradine, thatcher the inimitable, greville, joe small, fanny young, frank varley, hugh anderson, porter's stars of the australian stage and screen, abbott, lyceum theatre, mr & mrs robe, robert heir, g w daniels, bendigo histrionic club, carrick club, 'the old curiosity shop', benjamin farjeon or b l farjeon, louis quatorze, robert younge, woolridge's eagle saloon, fry's troupe, coleman's rotunda theatre, old house, rainer's ethipian serenaders, jacobs, mrs macgowan, the golden age, foos & fitzgerald, madame arnati, gibson, pearsons harmonic hall, london hotel, little joe and the comical wonder, pick and shovel, united states hotel, john hunter kerr, marsh troupe, lyster opera co, miss avonia jones, cobb & co, billy heffernan, shamrock hotel, st james hall, crowley, royal princess theatre, offenbach's duchess of gerolstein, james cassius williamson, maggie moore, hal porter, grattan riggs co, garner, musgrove, george rignold, bland holt, harry rickards, london gaiety co, alfred dampier, dan barry co, harold stephen, coghill brothers, paine, waterman & balfe, the australian bijou opera co, williamson & musgrove's royal opera co, nellie stewart, the alfred dampier co, ward lyons dramatic co, george darrell, william elton, charles arnold's co, masonic theatre, the capital), the bendigo dramatic society, the bendigo glee club, the bendigo amateur dramatic club, bendigo orchestra, bendigo liedertafel, alice crawford, wilson barrett co, ernest toy, emily dyason, gertrude alger, william murdoch, a c bartleman, madame benda, amy and eileen castles, erna mueller, madame bertha rossow, e a bindley, kate samuels, jan kubelik

John Webster Lawson was born in Sheffield, England in 1855. HE travelled Europe as a young man where he studies art in Paris under Ferdinand Cormon. He arrived in Australia in 1895. His first job in the arts was designing theatre sets for James Cassius Williamson whose theatrical management company was described in its heyday as the largest theatrical firm in the world. Lawson went on to open an art school in Nhill where one of his pupils was Percy Leason. Lawson died in Sale in 1941.Oil painting in a gold coloured timber frame. The painting depicts a coastal scene. To the fore of the painting is a wrecked timber dinghy boat on the sand. It is falling apart. To the right of the boat are large rocks, to the left is the sea. There are sailing boats on the sea and the coastline stretches into the horizon. There are cliffs running along the edge of the sea. The sky is blue with white fluffy clouds.Signed bottom rightportland, glenelg shire council cultural collection, oil painting, sea scape, landscape, 1800s

John Webster Lawson was born in Sheffield, England in 1855. HE travelled Europe as a young man where he studies art in Paris under Ferdinand Cormon. He arrived in Australia in 1895. His first job in the arts was designing theatre sets for James Cassius Williamson whose theatrical management company was described in its heyday as the largest theatrical firm in the world. Lawson went on to open an art school in Nhill where one of his pupils was Percy Leason. Lawson died in Sale in 1941.Oil painting in a gold coloured timber frame. The frame is ornate and detailed with scrolls and decorations and each corner. The scene depicts and rocky beach. Steep cliffs follow the coastline along. There are two seagulls on the beach and several flying above the water. There are sailing boats on the sea. At the top of the cliffs in the top left corner is a building. The sky is blue with white fluffy clouds.Signed and dated bottom leftportland, glenelg shire council cultural collection, oil painting, sea scape, landscape, 1800s

John Webster Lawson was born in Sheffield, England in 1855. HE travelled Europe as a young man where he studies art in Paris under Ferdinand Cormon. He arrived in Australia in 1895. His first job in the arts was designing theatre sets for James Cassius Williamson whose theatrical management company was described in its heyday as the largest theatrical firm in the world. Lawson went on to open an art school in Nhill where one of his pupils was Percy Leason. Lawson died in Sale in 1941.Oil painting in a double frame. The inner frame is canvas with a gold timber beveled inner edge and the outer frame is timber. The scene depicts a coastal scene. A beach in the foreground with three cows grazing on the grass to the left. A rickety fence can be seen behind the cows. The cliffs reach out to the horizon and a lighthouse can be seen in the distance at the top of the cliffs. There are two sailing boats on the sea and seagulls flying above the water. The sky is blue with a few clouds.Signed and dated bottom leftportland, glenelg shire council cultural collection, oil painting, sea scape, landscape, 1800s, lighthouse

Nine page loose-leaf typewritten (draft) paper re history of Theatre in Bendigo - no author given (has handwritten annotation -''Was this the talk given by Pat Lyon to RHSC - ask James Lerk ''. Pages 12 to 19 are numbered and the is an accompanying unnumbered page with annotation ''who compiled this?'' which seems to relate to theatre in Dunolly, rather than Bendigo. Detail of history of theatre in Bendigo incl ref to: Lyceum Theatre; Theatre Royal; Marsh Troupe; Lyster Opera Co.; proposal to build an Opera House; St James Hall; Royal Princess Theatre; James Cassius Williamson; itinerant lecturers; various performing companies by name (page 15); various 'smash hits of the day' (page 15); in detail - the shows in Sandhurst for the year 1894 , month by month; the Masonic Theatre; Bendigo Dramatic Society; Bendigo Glee Club; Bendigo Orchestra; Bendigo Liedertafel; Alice Crawford (Shakespearian actress); Bindley's Conservatorium of Music with list of talented artists from there; Austral Competitionsentertainment, theatre, history, royal prinecss theatre. masonic theatre. austral competitions. lyceum theatre, theatre royal, bendigo glee club. bendigo dramatic society, alice crawford. crowley. billy heffernan. st. james hall.