Gladys Moncrieff (13 April 1892 – 8 February 1976) was an Australian singer who was so successful in musical theatre and recordings that she became known as 'Australia's Queen of Song' and 'Our Glad'.
Life and career
Early years
Moncrieff was born in
Bundaberg
Bundaberg is a city in the Bundaberg Region, Queensland, Australia, and is the tenth largest city in the state. Bundaberg's regional area has a population of 70,921, and is a major centre of the Wide Bay–Burnett geographical region. The Bun ...
,
Queensland
)
, nickname = Sunshine State
, image_map = Queensland in Australia.svg
, map_caption = Location of Queensland in Australia
, subdivision_type = Country
, subdivision_name = Australia
, established_title = Before federation
, established_ ...
. Her father Robert Edward Moncrieff was a piano tuner, and her mother, who went by the stage name Amy Lambell, was a professional singer; they lived in
North Isis
North Isis is a rural locality in the Bundaberg Region, Queensland
)
, nickname = Sunshine State
, image_map = Queensland in Australia.svg
, map_caption = Location of Queensland in Australia
, subdivision_type = Country
, subdivision_na ...
. She attended several schools in north Queensland, and quickly became involved in music. Her first stage performance was at the age of six at the Queen's Theatre in Bundaberg, where she sang the American folk song "The Merriest Girl That's Out" with her father accompanying on piano.
[Peter Burgis]
Moncrieff, Gladys Lillian (1892–1976)
, ''Australian Dictionary of Biography'', Volume 10, Melbourne University Press, 1986, pp. 551–552. She performed in
Gilbert and Sullivan
Gilbert and Sullivan was a Victorian era, Victorian-era theatrical partnership of the dramatist W. S. Gilbert (1836–1911) and the composer Arthur Sullivan (1842–1900), who jointly created fourteen comic operas between 1871 and 1896, of which ...
productions. At the 1907
Charters Towers eisteddfod, Gladys shared first prize for her junior soprano rendition of "O for the Wings of a Dove" with local girl Eileen Coleman.
When she left school, she and her parents travelled around far north Queensland performing. Moncrieff was billed as 'Little Gladys: The Australian Wonder Child' and her performances helped her to raise funds to move to
Brisbane
Brisbane ( ) is the capital and most populous city of the states and territories of Australia, Australian state of Queensland, and the list of cities in Australia by population, third-most populous city in Australia and Oceania, with a populati ...
to pursue her career. She worked in Brisbane and
Toowoomba during 1909, and then went to Sydney with her mother. In Sydney she auditioned for
Hugh J. Ward
Hugh Joseph Ward (24 June 1871 – 21 April 1941) was an American-born stage actor who had a substantial career in Australia as comic actor, dancer, manager and theatrical impresario.
Biography
Hugh J. Ward was born in Philadelphia on 24 June ...
for a position in
J. C. Williamson
James Cassius Williamson (26 August 1845 – 6 July 1913) was an American actor and later Australia's foremost impresario, founding the J. C. Williamson's theatrical and production company.
Born in Pennsylvania, Williamson moved with his fami ...
's theatre. She was successful, and with a starting salary of £3 per week she spent 18 months receiving singing lessons from Ward's wife, Madame Grace Miller. In January 1913 she had a small part in ''
The Sunshine Girl'' at
Her Majesty's Theatre, Sydney. In 1914 she was in the chorus of a house Gilbert and Sullivan production; for there she took on leading roles such as Josephine in ''
H.M.S. Pinafore
''H.M.S. Pinafore; or, The Lass That Loved a Sailor'' is a comic opera in two acts, with music by Arthur Sullivan and a libretto by W. S. Gilbert. It opened at the Opera Comique in London, on 25 May 1878 and ran for 571 performances, which ...
''.
The company toured New Zealand and performed in Melbourne.
![Sthrnmaid](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/9/94/Sthrnmaid.jpg)
Moncrieff toured South Africa and New Zealand as a leading lady in numerous productions. When she returned to Australia she landed her most famous role as Teresa in
Harold Fraser-Simson
Harold Fraser-Simson (15 August 1872 – 19 January 1944) was an English composer of light music, including songs and the scores to Edwardian musical comedies, musical comedies. His most famous musical was the World War I hit ''The Maid of the M ...
's light opera ''
The Maid of the Mountains'', which she first performed in Melbourne in 1921.
The waltz song "Love Will Find a Way" became particularly associated with her. The Maid was to become the most frequently revived musical of the Australian stage, and Moncrieff appeared in it some 2,800 times.
She also was a success in ''
A Southern Maid
''A Southern Maid'' is an operetta in three acts composed by Harold Fraser-Simson, with a book by Dion Clayton Calthrop and Harry Graham and lyrics by Harry Graham and Harry Miller. Additional music was provided by Ivor Novello and George ...
'' in 1923.
Contemporary critics wrote of the purity, richness, power and wide range of her voice, her conviction of style and her clear enunciation. H. Brewster-Jones spoke of the "richness of quality and expression in her well produced voice, and makes a striking appeal to a concert audience with her platform manner and interpretive abilities" in a 1938 review of a concert performance at the Adelaide Town Hall.
Later years
![GladysMoncrieff](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/9/9b/GladysMoncrieff.JPG)
In May 1924, Moncrieff married Thomas Henry Moore, at
St James' Church, Sydney in a ceremony that attracted a large crowd. Moore became her manager. While honeymooning in England and France, she made her first gramophone recordings for the
Vocalion Company
Vocalion Records is an American record company and label.
History
The label was founded in 1916 by the Aeolian Company, a maker of pianos and organs, as Aeolian-Vocalion; the company also sold phonographs under the Vocalion name. "Aeolian" was ...
. In Australia she was hugely successful as a musical comedy performer. She earned £150 a week, which made her one of the highest-paid performers in the history of Australian theatre.
She left Australia for the stage in England in 1926. Her first show there was poorly received, but when she appeared in
Franz Lehár's ''
The Blue Mazurka
''Die Blaue Mazur'' (''The Blue Mazurka'') is an operetta by Franz Lehár.
It was first performed in Vienna in 1920.
Synopsis
The operetta takes place in Poland
Poland, officially the Republic of Poland, is a country in Central Europ ...
'' in 1927, her success in England was assured. While in England she made 37 more gramophone recordings, which were sold locally and exported to Australia where they sold successfully.
Her marriage was not successful and she began to live apart from her husband,
and then returned to Australia to appear in John Fuller's ''
Rio Rita''. The production was a commercial success and her career in Australia bloomed. She had a radio show in Australia and in the 1930s undertook tours for the New Zealand Broadcasting Service with New Zealand pianist
Gil Dech
Gil Dech (3 February 1897 – 1 November 1974) was a New Zealand pianist, recording director and conductor. He was born in Yardley, Worcestershire, England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borde ...
. She also appeared in the Australian musicals ''
Collits' Inn
Collits' Inn is a heritage-listed former inn and now functions, accommodation and restaurant at Hartley Vale Road, Hartley Vale, City of Lithgow, New South Wales, Australia. It was designed by Pierce Collits and built in 1823. It is also known ...
'' and ''
The Cedar Tree
''The Cedar Tree'' was a television serial that ran from 1976 to 1979 on ITV in the United Kingdom.
It involved the story of the upper class Bourne family before the turn of the Second World War. The main setting is Larkfield Manor, the family ...
'' for producer
F. W. Thring
Francis William Thring (2 December 1882 – 1 July 1936), better known as F. W. Thring, was an Australian film director, film producer, producer, and film exhibitor, exhibitor. He has been credited with the invention of the clapperboard.
Early ...
.
Her career was put on hold in March 1938 when she was involved in a motor vehicle accident, and she did not return to the stage until June 1940. She returned to perform in musical comedy, and was engaged to entertain Australian troops fighting in the Second World War at home and in
New Guinea
New Guinea (; Hiri Motu
Hiri Motu, also known as Police Motu, Pidgin Motu, or just Hiri, is a language of Papua New Guinea, which is spoken in surrounding areas of Port Moresby (Capital of Papua New Guinea).
It is a simplified version of ...
, and she became very active raising funds for war-related charities. In 1951 she toured Japan and
Korea
Korea ( ko, 한국, or , ) is a peninsular region in East Asia. Since 1945, it has been divided at or near the 38th parallel, with North Korea (Democratic People's Republic of Korea) comprising its northern half and South Korea (Republic o ...
to entertain British and Australian occupation forces. For her wartime contributions, she was made an Officer of the
Order of the British Empire
The Most Excellent Order of the British Empire is a British order of chivalry, rewarding contributions to the arts and sciences, work with charitable and welfare organisations,
and public service outside the civil service. It was established ...
in 1952 for services to patriotic and charitable movements.
She continued her stage and radio work, and during 1958 and 1959 began her farewell stage tour of Australia and New Zealand. Her final stage appearance was at
Hamilton, New Zealand
Hamilton ( mi, Kirikiriroa) is an inland city in the North Island of New Zealand. Located on the banks of the Waikato River, it is the seat and most populous city of the Waikato region. With a territorial population of , it is the country's fou ...
, and her last public performance was in a televised concert in Brisbane in 1962. She retired to the
Gold Coast
Gold Coast may refer to:
Places Africa
* Gold Coast (region), in West Africa, which was made up of the following colonies, before being established as the independent nation of Ghana:
** Portuguese Gold Coast (Portuguese, 1482–1642)
** Dutch G ...
, Queensland in 1968 and prepared her memoirs ''My Life of Song'' which was ghosted by Lillian Palmer and published in 1971. In 1962 Moncrieff made guest appearances on
George Wallace Jnr’s television show
Theatre Royal.
Moncrieff came outside of her Gold Coast home on a canal to wave to the people on the canal cruise boats whilst they played her arias.
Moncrieff died at
Pindara Private Hospital at the Gold Coast at the age of 83.
Legacy
![StateLibQld 1 101116](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/b/bc/StateLibQld_1_101116.jpg)
The federal electoral
division of Moncrieff
The Division of Moncrieff is an Australian Electoral Division in Queensland.
Geography
Since 1984, federal electoral division boundaries in Australia have been determined at redistributions by a redistribution committee appointed by the Aust ...
in Queensland, and the
Canberra
Canberra ( )
is the capital city of Australia. Founded following the federation of the colonies of Australia as the seat of government for the new nation, it is Australia's largest inland city and the eighth-largest city overall. The ci ...
suburb
Moncrieff are both named in her honour.
Her image was featured on an Australian postage stamp in 1989.
The main entertainment complex in Bundaberg was named the Moncrieff Theatre, later changed to the Moncrieff Entertainment Centre.
A Gold Coast park was named in her honour, and the
Queensland Performing Arts Centre
The Queensland Performing Arts Centre (also known as QPAC) is part of the Queensland Cultural Centre and is located on the corner of Melbourne Street and Grey Street in Brisbane's South Bank, Queensland, South Bank precinct. Opened in 1985, it ...
maintains the Gladys Moncrieff Library of the Performing Arts.
A book ''Gladys Moncrieff : Australia's Queen of Song'' was published in 1996; a 2-CD release of her recordings was put out in 2012 entitled "Gladys Moncrieff – Our Glad: The Queen of Song", based on her 1920s and 1930s recordings; four earlier CDs contain all of the songs on this 2-CD release plus others, and were released in the 1990s: "Gladys Moncrieff sings musical comedy & operetta", "Gladys Moncrieff: the Golden Years;", "Gladys Moncrieff: Australia's Queen of Song;" "Gladys Moncrieff: favourite popular ballads;" a few additional songs are found on the double cassette: "Gladys Moncrieff: Stage Musicals";
Her personal papers, including correspondence, photographs, newspaper clippings and theatre programs are held at the
State Library of Queensland
The State Library of Queensland is the main reference and research library provided to the people of the State of Queensland, Australia, by the state government. Its legislative basis is provided by the Queensland Libraries Act 1988. It contai ...
.
In 2009 as part of the
Q150
Q150 was the sesquicentenary (150th anniversary) of the Separation of Queensland from New South Wales in 1859. Separation established the Colony of Queensland which became the State of Queensland in 1901 as part of the Federation of Australia. Q15 ...
celebrations, Gladys Moncrieff was announced as one of the
Q150 Icons
The Queensland's Q150 Icons list of cultural icons was compiled as part of Q150 celebrations in 2009 by the Government of Queensland, Australia. It represented the people, places and events that were significant to Queensland's first 150 years. ...
of Queensland for her role as an "Influential Artists".
Select album discography
*1996 – ''Australia's Queen Of Song'' (
EMI
EMI Group Limited (originally an initialism for Electric and Musical Industries, also referred to as EMI Records Ltd. or simply EMI) was a British transnational conglomerate founded in March 1931 in London. At the time of its break-up in 201 ...
Records Australia)
References
External links
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{{DEFAULTSORT:Moncrieff, Gladys
1892 births
1976 deaths
People from Bundaberg
Australian operatic sopranos
Australian Officers of the Order of the British Empire
Australian memoirists
Australian musical theatre actresses
20th-century Australian women singers
Australian women memoirists
20th-century memoirists