The story of music hall
The story of the Music Halls. Music Halls can be traced back to the taverns and coffee houses of 18th century Londo…
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Music hall character acts
Although songs were central to the performance in early music halls, entertainment soon developed to incude lions c…
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Paul Cinquevalli
Paul Cinquevalli was the most famous juggler of the late 19th and early 20th centuries. He could balance a man on o…
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Lottie Collins
Lottie Collins began her career in 1877 in a skipping rope dance act with her sisters. While in America in 1891 she…
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Gus Elen
Gus Elen was the best known of the 'coster' comedians, who performed songs and sketches about being a Cockney. Elen…
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El Niño Farini
Born in 1855, El Niño Farini first performed at the age of 10 on stage at the Alhambra theatre in London with his f…
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George Leybourne
George Leybourne’s real name was Joe Saunders. He was born in the Midlands in 1842 and gave up a job as a mechanic …
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Marie Lloyd
Known as the ‘Queen of the Music Hall’ Marie Lloyd’s career spanned 40 years. She first appeared at the Eagle Taver…
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Max Miller
Born in Brighton in 1895 as Thomas Henry Sargent, Max Miller started out as a motor mechanic and made his first app…
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Vesta Tilley
Vesta Tilley was a male impersonator from the music halls. Born in Worcester in 1864 she had a huge interest in the…
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Dance in popular theatre
A brief history of dance in popular theatre from the 17th century, through music hall, the development of ballet, skirt dancing and the Tiller Girls.
Biography of Dan Leno
Dan Leno, the late-19th-century Music Hall star, was famous for playing pantomime dames.
A history of a night at the theatre
Drama in Britain grew of out church services at Easter from the 10th century onwards. By the 14th century mystery cycles of plays based on the Bible were performed outside the church by members of craft guilds in cities such as York and Chester. Each play was staged on a pageant wagons that processed through the streets.
History of Black dance
The term Black dance describes a range of styles whose origins include: the tribal dances of Africa, the slave dances of the West Indies and the American Deep South, the Harlem social dances of the 1920s and the jazz dance of Broadway musicals. Black dance has often been bound up with social and rights issues. The history of black dance in Britain is relatively young, and the first black British dance company, Ballet Nègres, was formed in 1946.
Jules Léotard
An introduction to Jules Léotard who invented the flying trapeze act. Jules Léotard's other great legacy is the item of clothing named after him - the leotard.
Ballgowns: British Glamour Since 1950
From 19 May 2012 the V&A celebrates the opening of the newly renovated Fashion Galleries with an exhibition of beautiful ballgowns, red carpet evening dresses and catwalk showstoppers.
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Music, by Dante Gabriel Rossetti (Custom print)
Music, by Dante Gabriel Rossetti (A4 Print, Satin Finish)
Buy nowEvent - Theatre & Performance Galleries Tour
Fri 19 February 2010–Mon 31 December 2012
TOUR: Take a guided tour of the V&A's exciting theatre and performance collections, including rock & pop posters, theatre and ballet costumes, puppets, stage sets and more! See new costumes from the Lion King now on display.
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