Musical comedy actor Jill Perryman made her debut at the age of three in a 1936 touring production of White Horse Inn.

The company toured the show around 10,000 miles of Northern Queensland, performing in Wirth 's Circus tent when there was no theatre available. Perryman joined her father Bill, mother Dorothy Duval and sister Diana on stage as a 'goat girl' dressed in a costume made from tiny scraps of material found backstage so that Jill could thave a 'walk-on' part in the production.

The costume now forms part of the Arts Centre’s Performing Arts Collection.

Gift of Jill Perryman, 1989

This photograph shows three generations of performers from the one family. The child in the photograph is actor-director Tony Sheldon.

Tony grew up surrounded by an extended theatrical family that included his mother Toni Lamond, father Frank Sheldon, grandparents Max Reddy and Stella Lamond and aunt Helen Reddy.

During 1955, Toni, Frank and Tony travelled throughout Tasmania and Northern Queensland with Max and Stella's show, The Follies. In Queensland they travelled on the 'show train ', a train especially chartered by the Showman's Guild to transport performers throughout the region.

Toni Lamond recalls:

“Most of the time we lived in hotels, with Tony in the bottom drawer. But once or twice the town was full and we had to stay on the show train. We didn't mind. It was like camping. The siding was grassy ,we could cook our meals on the trusty metho stove, and for Tony's bath in a bucket I got hot water from the steam engine.”

Featuring (left to right): Max Reddy, Helen Reddy, Stella Lamond, Tony Sheldon and Toni Lamond.

This photograph forms part of the Toni Lamond Collection which was donated to the Performing Arts Collection, the Arts Centre, Melbourne in 1996

Actor-director Irene Mitchell was an important figure in Melbourne's theatrical circles for over 40 years. She was artistic director of St Martin's/Little Theatre and provided a role model for a generation of Melbourne actors.

'Miss Mitchell' often referred to her protégés as 'my children' , and provided them with support and encouragement in both their professional and private lives. Two of the Victorian Arts Centre's early visionaries, George Fairfax and designer John Truscott, both trained under the maternal eye of Irene Mitchell. She also actively encouraged her charges to gain broader experience and exposure to alternative theatrical traditions by working overseas.

At the same time, she was welcoming performers arriving from Britain during the 1950s and 1960s to the St Martin's family. Miss Mitchell was a dedicated supporter of the Performing Arts Collection, heading up the Voluntary Guild from 1977, and passing on a lifetime's knowledge of theatre to the new staff.

The photograph was donated by Irene Mitchell to the Performing Arts Collection, the Arts Centre, Melbourne in 1981

This photograph captures visually the excitement backstage during a performance. Such close physical proximity also helps to build a family atmosphere in the theatre.

Actor-director Irene Mitchell was an important figure in Melbourne's theatrical circles for over 40 years. She was artistic director of St Martin's/Little Theatre and provided a role model for a generation of Melbourne actors.

'Miss Mitchell' often referred to her protégés as 'my children' , and provided them with support and encouragement in both their professional and private lives. Two of the Victorian Arts Centre's early visionaries, George Fairfax and designer John Truscott, both trained under the maternal eye of Irene Mitchell. She also actively encouraged her charges to gain broader experience and exposure to alternative theatrical traditions by working overseas.

At the same time, she was welcoming performers arriving from Britain during the 1950s and 1960s to the St Martin's family. Miss Mitchell was a dedicated supporter of the Performing Arts Collection, heading up the Voluntary Guild from 1977, and passing on a lifetime's knowledge of theatre to the new staff.

Featuring (left to right): Charles Murray, Peter Batey, unidentified man, Fay Parsons, Bunney Brook and Irene Mitchell backstage at the Melbourne Little Theatre.

The photograph was donated to the Performing Arts Collection, the Arts Centre, Melbourne by Charles Murray in 1997

Val Jellay met her husband Maurie Fields while travelling with Sorlie's, a rival to Max Reddy's Follies.

Val well remembers how:

“In a travelling company, theatrical pros become very close; it's inevitable -the constant packing, unpacking, the formality on stage, informality off. The illnesses that must be ignored, the urgency of getting from one show to the next, ovations, deflations, heat, cold and a minimum of one year's commitment. With some it was three or four years. In my case it was seven. Romance was sparked by familiarity.”

The difficulties associated with touring can also forge particularly strong bonds between performers and technical crew who are not related. Less obvious than the biological family yet crucial to the industry, the theatrical family evolves when a group of people are thrown together for a period of time characterised by intense and intimate interaction, shared passion, commitment and stress.