The Variety Artistes' Federation ( VAF ) was a trade union representing variety performers in the United Kingdom .
74-556: The Music Hall Strike of 1907 was a theatrical dispute which took place between music hall employees, stage artistes and London theatre proprietors. The catalyst for the strikes were the employees' lack of pay, the scrapping of perks , and an increase in working hours, and matinée performances. The strike commenced on 22 January 1907 at the Holborn Empire in London and lasted for two weeks. The dispute gained momentum owing to
148-685: A brand name for music-halls all over the British Empire. During 1892, the Royal English Opera House, which had been a financial failure in Shaftesbury Avenue , applied for a music hall licence and was converted by Walter Emden into a grand music hall and renamed the Palace Theatre of Varieties , managed by Charles Morton . Denied by the newly created LCC permission to construct the promenade, which
222-504: A few of the many types of entertainments the audiences could expect to find over the next forty years. The Music Hall Strike of 1907 was an important industrial conflict. It was a dispute between artists and stage hands on one hand, and theatre managers on the other. The halls had recovered by the start of the First World War and were used to stage charity events in aid of the war effort. Music hall entertainment continued after
296-516: A fire in 1898. The construction of Weston's Music Hall , High Holborn (1857), built up on the site of the Six Cans and Punch Bowl Tavern by the licensed victualler of the premises, Henry Weston, signalled that the West End was fruitful territory for the music hall. During 1906 it was rebuilt as a variety theatre and renamed as the Holborn Empire . It was closed as a result of German action in
370-486: A home, having spent their working lives living in digs between performances. Stage and film musicals, however, continued to be influenced by the music hall idiom, including Oliver! , Dr Dolittle and My Fair Lady . The BBC series The Good Old Days , which ran for thirty years, recreated the music hall for the modern audience, and the Paul Daniels Magic Show allowed several speciality acts
444-471: A legitimate cultural form was established by the first Royal Variety Performance before King George V during 1912 at the Palace Theatre. However, consistent with this new respectability the best-known music hall entertainer of the time, Marie Lloyd , was not invited, being deemed too "saucy" for presentation to the monarchy. The development of syndicates controlling a number of theatres, such as
518-652: A music hall song consists of a series of verses sung by the performer alone, and a repeated chorus which carries the principal melody, and in which the audience is encouraged to join. Variety Artistes%27 Federation The union was founded on 18 February 1906, after discussions between the show business social club and charity the Grand Order of Water Rats (GOWR); the Music Hall Artists Railway Association, which negotiated concessions on rail fares for travelling performers; and
592-507: A sense of grim humour ("When they wipe my face with sponges / and they feed me on blancmanges / I'm glad I've got a bit of a blighty one"). Tilley became more popular than ever during this time, when she and her husband, Walter de Frece , managed a military recruitment drive. In the guise of characters like 'Tommy in the Trench' and 'Jack Tar Home from Sea', Tilley performed songs such as "The army of today's all right" and "Jolly Good Luck to
666-549: A show called La Revue Nègre at the Théâtre des Champs-Élysées . She became an immediate success for her erotic dancing , and for appearing practically nude on stage. After a successful tour of Europe, she returned to France to star at the Folies Bergère . Baker performed the 'Danse sauvage,' wearing a costume consisting of a skirt made of a string of artificial bananas. The music-halls suffered growing hardships in
740-582: A success for the union, which reached national agreements on codes of conduct, contracts and dispute resolution. Membership of the union peaked at over 5,600 in 1920, but more than halved over the next decade. It campaigned against "ex-enemy aliens" from Germany being allowed to work in British music halls after the First World War , and also had a strained relationship with the Actors' Association,
814-462: A television presence from 1979 to 1994. Aimed at a younger audience, but still owing a lot to the music hall heritage, was the late-1970s’ television series, The Muppet Show . The music hall was first imported into France in its British form in 1862, but under the French law protecting the state theatres, performers could not wear costumes or recite dialogue, something only allowed in theaters. When
SECTION 10
#1732772954827888-639: A theatre rather than a music hall, this establishment later hosted music-hall variety acts. The establishment often regarded as the first true music hall was the Canterbury , 143 Westminster Bridge Road , Lambeth built by Charles Morton , afterwards dubbed "the Father of the Halls", on the site of a skittle alley next to his pub, the Canterbury Tavern. It opened on 17 May 1852 and was described by
962-422: A week. Music hall entertainment received its first surge in popularity during the 1860s the audiences of which consisted of mainly working class people. The impresario Charles Morton actively invited women into his music hall, believing that they had a "civilising influence on the men". The surge in popularity further attracted female performers and by the 1860s, it had become common place for women to appear in
1036-680: A weekly newspaper, The Performer , and in early 1907 staged its first industrial action , which became known as the Music Hall Strike . After some members were locked out of theatres controlled by Walter Gibbons , twenty-two London theatres were picketed , with around half of the VAF members standing on picket lines. It raised funds by organising a performance at the Scala Theatre , its members working without pay. It agreed to arbitration, chaired by George Askwith , and this proved
1110-609: The Bristol Canterbury, which was built in 1850s as the first purpose-built music hall in the city. Another early music hall was The Middlesex, Drury Lane (1851). Popularly known as the 'Old Mo', it was built on the site of the Mogul Saloon. Later converted into a theatre it was demolished in 1965. The New London Theatre stands on its site. Several large music halls were built in the East End . These included
1184-545: The Champs-Élysées , was frequented by the upper and lower classes alike. He persuaded her to sing despite her extreme nervousness. Leplée taught her the basics of stage presence and told her to wear a black dress, which became her trademark apparel. Leplée ran an intense publicity campaign leading up to her opening night, attracting the presence of many celebrities, including Maurice Chevalier. Her nightclub appearance led to her first two records produced that same year, and
1258-453: The Scala Theatre in London, for which she donated her entire fee to the fund. Lloyd explained her advocacy: "We the stars can dictate our own terms. We are fighting not for ourselves, but for the poorer members of the profession, earning thirty shillings to £3 a week. For this they have to do double turns, and now matinées have been added as well. These poor things have been compelled to submit to unfair terms of employment, and I mean to back up
1332-485: The interwar period from the most popular new form of entertainment, the cinema . They responded by offering more complex and lavish shows. In 1911, the Olympia had introduced the giant stairway as a set for its productions, an idea copied by other music halls. Gaby Deslys rose in popularity and created, with her dance partner Harry Pilcer , her most famous dance The Gaby Glide . The singer Mistinguett made her debut
1406-549: The interwar period , no longer the single dominant form of popular entertainment in Britain. The improvement of cinema, the development of radio, and the cheapening of the gramophone damaged its popularity greatly. It now had to compete with jazz , swing and big band dance music. Licensing restrictions also changed its character. In 1914, the London County Council (LCC) enacted that drinking be banished from
1480-424: The 1850s a distinct musical style. Subject matter became more contemporary and humorous, and accompaniment was provided by larger house-orchestras, as increasing affluence gave the lower classes more access to commercial entertainment, and to a wider range of musical instruments, including the piano. The consequent change in musical taste from traditional to more professional forms of entertainment, arose in response to
1554-591: The 1850s and were built in and on the grounds of public houses. Such establishments were distinguished from theatres by the fact that in a music hall you would be seated at a table in the auditorium and could drink alcohol and smoke tobacco whilst watching the show. In a theatre, by contrast, the audience was seated in stalls and there was a separate bar-room. An exception to this rule was the Britannia Theatre , Hoxton (1841) which somehow managed to evade this regulation and served drinks to its customers. Though
SECTION 20
#17327729548271628-576: The 1930s. The Olympia was converted into a movie theater, and others closed. Others however continued to thrive. In 1937 and 1930, the Casino de Paris presented shows with Maurice Chevalier , who had already achieved success as an actor and singer in Hollywood . In 1935, a twenty-year old singer named Édith Piaf was discovered in the Pigalle by nightclub owner Louis Leplée , whose club, Le Gerny, off
1702-479: The Blitz on the night of 11–12 May 1941 and the building was pulled down in 1960. Significant West End music halls include: Other large suburban music halls included: A noted music hall entrepreneur of this time was Carlo Gatti who built a music hall, known as Gatti's, at Hungerford Market in 1857. He sold the music hall to South Eastern Railway in 1862, and the site became Charing Cross railway station . With
1776-615: The Casino de Paris in 1895, and continued to appear regularly in the 1920s and 1930s at the Folies Bergère , Moulin Rouge and Eldorado. Her risqué routines captivated Paris, and she became one of the most highly-paid and popular French entertainers of her time. One of the most popular entertainers in Paris during the period was the American singer Josephine Baker . Baker sailed to Paris, France. She first arrived in Paris in 1925 to perform in
1850-524: The English provinces. To match the success of the modern layout of contemporary theatres, music hall proprietors began to adopt the same design. One such establishment, the London Pavilion , was restyled as such in 1885. The refurbishments, which included fixed seating in the stalls, lead to the early origins of variety theatre , but the improvements proved expensive and managers had to adhere to
1924-489: The Girl who Loves a Soldier". This is how she got the nickname Britain's best recruiting sergeant – young men were sometimes asked to join the army on stage during her show. She also performed in hospitals and sold war bonds . Her husband was knighted in 1919 for his own services to the war effort, and Tilley became Lady de Frece. Once the reality of war began to sink home, the recruiting songs all but disappeared –
1998-564: The Greatest Hits collection for 1915 published by top music publisher Francis and Day contains no recruitment songs. After conscription was brought in 1916, songs dealing with the war spoke mostly of the desire to return home. Many also expressed anxiety about the new roles women were taking in society. Possibly the most notorious of music hall songs from the First World War was " Oh! It's a lovely war " ( 1917 ), popularised by male impersonator Ella Shields . Music hall continued during
2072-680: The London Music Hall, otherwise known as The Shoreditch Empire, 95–99 Shoreditch High Street , (1856–1935). This theatre was rebuilt during 1894 by Frank Matcham , the architect of the Hackney Empire . Another in this area was the Royal Cambridge Music Hall, 136 Commercial Street (1864–1936). Designed by William Finch Hill (the designer of the Britannia theatre in nearby Hoxton), it was rebuilt after
2146-554: The Old Mo. By the mid-19th century, the halls cried out for many new and catchy songs. As a result professional songwriters were enlisted to provide the music for a plethora of star performers, such as Marie Lloyd , Dan Leno , Little Tich , and George Leybourne . All manner of other entertainment was performed: male and female impersonators, lions comiques , mime artists and impressionists, trampoline acts, and comic pianists (such as John Orlando Parry and George Grossmith ) were just
2220-607: The Stoll circuit, increased tensions between employees and employers. On 22 January 1907, a dispute between artists, stage hands and managers of the Holborn Empire worsened. Strikes in other London and suburban halls followed, organised by the Variety Artistes' Federation. The strike lasted for almost two weeks and was known as the Music Hall War . It became extremely well known, and was advocated enthusiastically by
2294-467: The Terriers, another club for variety performers. It was formed in response to grievances by performers that some managers expected them to perform matinées , as well as two evening performances six days a week, without any additional payment, and that some performers were having to make long journeys without notice because of changes to schedules. Within weeks the union had 4,000 members. It launched
Music Hall Strike of 1907 - Misplaced Pages Continue
2368-711: The West End was the Empire, Leicester Square , built as a theatre in 1884 but acquiring a music hall licence in 1887. Like the nearby Alhambra this theatre appealed to the men of leisure by featuring alluring ballet dancers, and had a notorious promenade which was the resort of courtesans. Another spectacular example of the new variety theatre was the Tivoli in the Strand built 1888–90 in an eclectic neo-Romanesque style with Baroque and Moorish-Indian embellishments. " The Tivoli " became
2442-662: The arches of the elevated railway line leading to Charing Cross station. He opened it as another music hall, known as " Gatti's-in-The-Arches ". After his death his family continued to operate the music hall, known for a period as the Hungerford or Gatti's Hungerford Palace of Varieties. It became a cinema in 1910, and the Players' Theatre in 1946. By 1865, there were 32 music halls in London seating between 500 and 5,000 people plus an unknown, but large, number of smaller venues. Numbers peaked in 1878, with 78 large music halls in
2516-412: The attention of an often jaded and unruly urban audience. In America, from the 1840s, Stephen Foster had reinvigorated folk song with the admixture of Negro spiritual to produce a new type of popular song. Songs like " Old Folks at Home " (1851) and " Oh, Dem Golden Slippers " (James Bland, 1879]) spread round the globe, taking with them the idiom and appurtenances of the minstrel song. Typically,
2590-422: The auditorium into a separate bar and, during 1923, the separate bar was abolished by parliamentary decree. The exemption of the theatres from this latter act prompted some critics to denounce this legislation as an attempt to deprive the working classes of their pleasures, as a form of social control, whilst sparing the supposedly more responsible upper classes who patronised the theatres (though this could be due to
2664-667: The auditorium while the entertainment took place, with the cheapest seats located in the gallery. This differed from the conventional type of theatre, which seats the audience in stalls with a separate bar-room. Major music halls were based around London. Early examples included: the Canterbury Music Hall in Lambeth , Wilton's Music Hall in Tower Hamlets , and The Middlesex in Drury Lane , otherwise known as
2738-480: The bawdy performances. The writer and feminist Laura Ormiston Chant , who was a member of the Social Purity Alliance, disliked the innuendo displayed in music hall performances, and opined that the humour was attractive to nobody other than prostitutes who were beginning to sell their business in auditoriums. In 1895 Chant provided evidence to the London County Council who agreed that the humour
2812-519: The beginning of her career. Competition from movies and television largely brought an end to the Paris music hall. However, a few still flourish, with tourists as their primary audience. Major music halls include the Folies-Bergere , Crazy Horse Saloon , Casino de Paris , Olympia , and Moulin Rouge . The musical forms most associated with music hall evolved in part from traditional folk song and songs written for popular drama, becoming by
2886-410: The best examples are: A new era of variety theatre was developed by the rebuilding of the London Pavilion in 1885. Contemporary accounts noted: Hitherto the halls had borne unmistakeable evidence of their origins, but the last vestiges of their old connections were now thrown aside, and they emerged in all the splendour of their new-born glory. The highest efforts of the architect, the designer and
2960-567: The bottom of St Martin's Lane . This was followed by the London Palladium (1910) in Argyll Street . Both were designed by the prolific Frank Matcham . As music hall grew in popularity and respectability, and as the licensing authorities exercised ever firmer regulation, the original arrangement of a large hall with tables at which drink was served, changed to that of a drink-free auditorium . The acceptance of music hall as
3034-411: The decorator were enlisted in their service, and the gaudy and tawdry music hall of the past gave way to the resplendent "theatre of varieties" of the present day, with its classic exterior of marble and freestone, its lavishly appointed auditorium and its elegant and luxurious foyers and promenades brilliantly illuminated by myriad electric lights One of the most famous of these new palaces of pleasure in
Music Hall Strike of 1907 - Misplaced Pages Continue
3108-418: The dispute between artists, stage hands and managers of the Holborn Empire had worsened, and workers called for strike action. In support, theatrical workers followed suit and initiated widespread strikes across London. The disputes were funded by wealthy performers including Marie Lloyd. To raise spirits, Lloyd frequently performed on picket lines for free and took part in fundraising activities at among others
3182-494: The entertainment provided in the new style saloon bars of pubs during the 1830s. These venues replaced earlier semi-rural amusements provided by fairs and suburban pleasure gardens such as Vauxhall Gardens and the Cremorne Gardens . These latter became subject to urban development and became fewer and less popular. From the mid-19th century music halls spread to the provincial cities, such as Bristol. The saloon
3256-589: The federation in whatever steps are taken. World War I may have been the high-water mark of music hall popularity. The artists and composers threw themselves into rallying public support and enthusiasm for the war effort. Patriotic music hall compositions such as "Keep the Home Fires Burning" ( 1914 ), "Pack up Your Troubles" ( 1915 ), " It's a Long Way to Tipperary " ( 1914 ) and " We Don't Want to Lose You (But We Think You Ought To Go) " ( 1914 ), were sung by music hall audiences, and sometimes by soldiers in
3330-486: The federation in whatever steps are taken." The strike lasted for almost two weeks ending in arbitration, which satisfied most of the main demands, including a minimum wage and a maximum working week for performers. Music hall Music hall is a type of British theatrical entertainment that was most popular from the early Victorian era , beginning around 1850, through the Great War . It faded away after 1918 as
3404-432: The halls rebranded their entertainment as variety. Perceptions of a distinction in Britain between bold and scandalous music hall entertainment and subsequent, more respectable variety entertainment differ. Music hall involved a mixture of popular songs, comedy, speciality acts, and variety entertainment. The term is derived from a type of theatre or venue in which such entertainment took place. In North America vaudeville
3478-433: The halls. By 1875 there were 375 music halls in London with a further 384 in the rest of England. In-line with the increased number of venues, proprietors enlisted a catering workforce who would supply food and alcohol to patrons. In London, and to capitalise on the increasing public demand, some entertainers frequently appeared at several halls each night. As a result, the performers became popular, not only in London, but in
3552-579: The law changed in 1867, the Paris music hall flourished, and a half-dozen new halls opened, offering acrobats, singers, dancers, magicians, and trained animals. The first Paris music hall built specially for that purpose was the Folies-Bergere (1869); it was followed by the Moulin Rouge (1889), the Alhambra (1866), the first to be called a music hall, and the Olympia (1893). The Printania (1903)
3626-539: The licensing restrictions brought about due to the Defence of the Realm Act 1914 , which also applied to public houses). Even so, the music hall gave rise to such major stars as George Formby , Gracie Fields , Max Miller , Will Hay , and Flanagan and Allen during this period. In the mid-1950s, rock and roll , whose performers initially topped music hall bills, attracted a young audience who had little interest in
3700-591: The main spokesmen of the trade union and Labour movement – Ben Tillett and Keir Hardie for example. Picket lines were organized outside the theatres by the artistes, while in the provinces theatre management attempted to oblige artistes to sign a document promising never to join a trade union. The strike ended in arbitration, which satisfied most of the main demands, including a minimum wage and maximum working week for musicians. Several music hall entertainers such as Marie Dainton , Marie Lloyd , Arthur Roberts , Joe Elvin and Gus Elen were strong advocates of
3774-410: The managing director of Moss Empires , a theatre chain led by Edward Moss . Between those years, Moss Empires had bought up many of the English music halls and had begun to dominate the business. Stoll became notorious among his employees for implementing a strict working atmosphere. He paid them a low wage and erected signs backstage prohibiting performers and stagehands from using coarse language. By
SECTION 50
#17327729548273848-537: The metropolis and 300 smaller venues. Thereafter numbers declined due to stricter licensing restrictions imposed by the Metropolitan Board of Works and London County Council , and because of commercial competition between popular large suburban halls and the smaller venues, which put the latter out of business. A few of the UK's music halls have survived and have retained many of their original features. Among
3922-525: The music hall acts, while driving the older audience away. The final demise was competition from television, which grew popular after the Queen's coronation was televised. Some music halls tried to retain an audience by putting on striptease acts. In 1957, the playwright John Osborne delivered this elegy: The music hall is dying, and with it, a significant part of England. Some of the heart of England has gone; something that once belonged to everyone, for this
3996-473: The music hall proprietors who had not sold to Moss Empires years earlier had fallen and so an expansion of their syndicate members was formed to control the outgoing expenditures. The first significant rift came in 1906, when the Variety Artistes' Federation initiated a brief strike on behalf of its members. Tensions between employees and management had by then grown to such a level that the strike
4070-425: The musician and author Benny Green as being "the most significant date in all the history of music hall". The hall looked like most contemporary pub concert rooms, but its replacement in 1854 was of then unprecedented size. It was further extended in 1859, later rebuilt as a variety theatre and finally destroyed by German bombing in 1942. The Canterbury Hall became a model for music halls in other cities too, such as
4144-416: The nineteenth century, the first purpose-built music halls were being built in London. The halls created a demand for new and catchy popular songs, that could no longer be met from the traditional folk song repertoire. Professional songwriters were enlisted to fill the gap. The emergence of a distinct music hall style can be credited to a fusion of musical influences. Music hall songs needed to gain and hold
4218-645: The proceeds from selling his first music hall, Gatti acquired a restaurant in Westminster Bridge Road , opposite The Canterbury music hall. He converted the restaurant into a second Gatti's music hall, known as "Gatti's-in-the-Road", in 1865. It later became a cinema. The building was badly damaged in the Second World War, and was demolished in 1950. In 1867, he acquired a public house in Villiers Street named "The Arches", under
4292-474: The rapid industrialisation and urbanisation of previously rural populations during the Industrial Revolution . The newly created urban communities, cut off from their cultural roots, required new and readily accessible forms of entertainment. Music halls were originally tavern rooms which provided entertainment, in the form of music and speciality acts, for their patrons. By the middle years of
4366-448: The start of the 1900s music hall artistes had been in an unofficial dispute with theatre managers over the poor working conditions. Other factors included the poor pay, lack of perks, and a dramatic increase in the number of matinée performances. By 1903 audience numbers had fallen which was attributed in part to the banning of alcohol in auditoriums and the introduction of the more popular variety show format, favoured by Stoll. Profits for
4440-432: The strict safety regulations which had recently been introduced. Together with the increase of the performers fee, music hall proprietors were forced to sell their shares and formed syndicates with wealthy investors. By the 1890s, music hall entertainment had earned a more risqué reputation. Artists including Marie Lloyd were receiving frequent criticism from theatre reviewers and influential feminists , who disagreed with
4514-479: The strike, though they themselves earned enough not to be concerned personally in a material sense. Lloyd explained her advocacy: We (the stars) can dictate our own terms. We are fighting not for ourselves, but for the poorer members of the profession, earning thirty shillings to £3 a week. For this they have to do double turns, and now matinées have been added as well. These poor things have been compelled to submit to unfair terms of employment, and I mean to back up
SECTION 60
#17327729548274588-473: The support from popular entertainers including Marie Dainton , Marie Lloyd , Arthur Roberts , Joe Elvin and Gus Elen , all of whom were active on picket lines outside both London and provincial theatres. The strikes ended two weeks later and resulted in a rise in pay and better working conditions for both stage workers and artistes. Music hall entertainment originated in the plethora of London taverns and coffee houses of 18th century. The atmosphere within
4662-455: The trenches. Many songs promoted recruitment ("All the boys in khaki get the nice girls", 1915); others satirised particular elements of the war experience. "What did you do in the Great war, Daddy" ( 1919 ) criticised profiteers and slackers; Vesta Tilley 's "I've got a bit of a blighty one" ( 1916 ) showed a soldier delighted to have a wound just serious enough to be sent home. The rhymes give
4736-465: The venues appealed mainly to working class men who ate, drank alcohol and initiated illicit business deals together. They were entertained by performers who sang songs whilst the audience socialised. By the 1830s publicans designated specific rooms for patrons to go where they formed musical groups. The meetings culminated in a Saturday evening presentation of the week's rehearsals. The meetings became popular and increased in number to two or three times
4810-527: The war, but became less popular due to upcoming jazz , swing , and big-band dance music acts. Licensing restrictions had also changed, and drinking was banned from the auditorium. A new type of music hall entertainment had arrived, in the form of variety, and many music hall performers failed to make the transition. They were deemed old-fashioned, and with the closure of many halls, music hall entertainment ceased and modern-day variety began. Music-halls had their origins in 18th century London. They grew with
4884-667: Was Evans Music-and-Supper Rooms , 43 King Street, Covent Garden , established in the 1840s by W.H. Evans. This venue was also known as 'Evans Late Joys' – Joy being the name of the previous owner. Other song and supper rooms included the Coal Hole in The Strand , the Cyder Cellars in Maiden Lane, Covent Garden and the Mogul Saloon in Drury Lane . The music hall as we know it developed from such establishments during
4958-620: Was "the father and mother, the dry and wet nurse of the Music Hall". Later known as the Grecian Theatre, it was here that Marie Lloyd made her début at the age of 14 in 1884. It is still famous because of an English nursery rhyme, with the somewhat mysterious lyrics: Up and down the City Road In and out The Eagle That's the way the money goes Pop goes the weasel . Another famous "song and supper" room of this period
5032-580: Was a music-garden, open only in summer, with a theater, restaurant, circus, and horse-racing. Older theaters also transformed themselves into music halls, including the Bobino (1873), the Bataclan (1864), and the Alcazar (1858). At the beginning, music halls offered dance reviews, theater and songs, but gradually songs and singers became the main attraction. Paris music halls all faced stiff competition in
5106-687: Was a room where for an admission fee or a greater price at the bar, singing, dancing, drama or comedy was performed. The most famous London saloon of the early days was the Grecian Saloon , established in 1825, at The Eagle (a former tea-garden), 2 Shepherdess Walk, off the City Road in east London. According to John Hollingshead , proprietor of the Gaiety Theatre, London (originally the Strand Music Hall), this establishment
5180-508: Was advocated enthusiastically by the main spokesmen for the trade union and Labour movement – Ben Tillett and Keir Hardie . Picket lines were organised into shifts outside theatres by workers and artistes. The news reached provincial theatres and managers attempted to convince their artistes to sign a contract promising never to join a trade union. The following year, the federation fought for more freedom and better working conditions on behalf of music-hall performers. On 21 January 1907,
5254-454: Was in some ways analogous to British music hall, featuring rousing songs and comic acts. Originating in saloon bars within pubs during the 1830s, music hall entertainment became increasingly popular with audiences. So much so, that during the 1850s some public houses were demolished, and specialised music hall theatres developed in their place. These theatres were designed chiefly so that people could consume food and alcohol and smoke tobacco in
5328-621: Was such a popular feature of the Empire and Alhambra, the Palace compensated in the way of adult entertainment by featuring apparently nude women in tableaux vivants , though the concerned LCC hastened to reassure patrons that the girls who featured in these displays were actually wearing flesh-toned body stockings and were not naked at all. One of the grandest of these new halls was the Coliseum Theatre built by Oswald Stoll in 1904 at
5402-583: Was too risqué. They decided to imposed restrictions on the halls including the issuing of liquor licences. Unsatisfied, Chant further attempted to censor the halls by successfully convincing the council to erect large screens around the promenade at the Empire Theatre in Leicester Square , as part of the licensing conditions; the screens proved unpopular and were later pulled down by the protesting audiences. In 1898 Oswald Stoll had become
5476-470: Was truly a folk art. Moss Empires , the largest British music hall chain, closed the majority of its theatres in 1960, closely followed by the death of music hall stalwart Max Miller in 1963, prompting one contemporary to write that: "Music-halls ... died this afternoon when they buried Max Miller". Miller himself had sometimes said that the genre would die with him. Many music hall performers, unable to find work, fell into poverty; some did not even have
#826173