The Ship of Heaven

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The Ship of Heaven
Music Alfred Hill
LyricsHugh McCrae
Book Hugh McCrae
Premiere7 October 1933: Savoy Theatre, Sydney

The Ship of Heaven is a 1923 Australian light operetta (or "musical fantasy") by Hugh McCrae with music by Alfred Hill. [1] [2]

The work was given a private production in 1923. [3] [4] [5]

The original production open to the general public was presented by Doris Fitton's Independent Theatre [6] at the Savoy Theatre. [7] [8]

According to one writer in 1937, "it remainds the best fantasy by an Australian dramatist." [9]

Smith's Weekly called it " one of the most ambitious productions ever planned by a Little Theatre... represents .the work of Australia's greatest living poet, Hugh McCrae, and greatest living composer, Alfred Hill. Between them they have made this romantic operetta a work of memorable beauty.... In its field, "The Ship of Heaven" is easily the most important musical and poetic work that lias, so far been written in Australia." [10]

The text was published by Angus and Robertson in 1951.

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References

  1. Andrew D. McCredie, 'Hill, Alfred Francis (1869–1960)', Australian Dictionary of Biography, National Centre of Biography, Australian National University, https://adb.anu.edu.au/biography/hill-alfred-francis-6667/text11495, published first in hardcopy 1983, accessed online 17 October 2023.
  2. "INDEPENDENT THEATRE". The Sydney Morning Herald . No. 29, 879. New South Wales, Australia. 7 October 1933. p. 10. Retrieved 17 October 2023 via National Library of Australia.
  3. ""THE SHIP OF HEAVEN."". The Sydney Morning Herald . No. 26, 822. New South Wales, Australia. 22 December 1923. p. 14. Retrieved 17 October 2023 via National Library of Australia.
  4. ""THE SHIP OF HEAVEN"". The Daily Telegraph . No. 13, 741. New South Wales, Australia. 22 December 1923. p. 21. Retrieved 17 October 2023 via National Library of Australia.
  5. "THE SHIP OF HEAVEN", The Home: An Australian Quarterly, 5 (1), Sydney: Art in Australia, 1 March 1924, nla.obj-383325446, retrieved 17 October 2023 via Trove
  6. "Independent Theatre Company Sydney, N.S.W.. (1930-1976)", Trove, 2008, retrieved 18 October 2023
  7. "Savoy Theatre (Sydney, NSW). (1929-1937)", Trove, 2020, retrieved 18 October 2023
  8. "A theatre fought hard". The Daily Telegraph . Vol. XII, no. 190. New South Wales, Australia. 1 November 1947. p. 16. Retrieved 17 October 2023 via National Library of Australia.
  9. Moore, William (1937). "The Development of Australian Drama". The Best Australian One Act Plays. p. xxv.
  10. ""The Ship of Heaven"". Smith's Weekly . Vol. XV, no. 35. New South Wales, Australia. 7 October 1933. p. 6. Retrieved 17 October 2023 via National Library of Australia.