| The Squatter's Daughter or, The Land of the Wattle | |
|---|---|
 Poster from 1908 Production | |
| Written by | Bert Bailey Edmund Duggan |
| Characters | Violet Enderby Archie McPherson |
| Date premiered | 9 February 1907 [1] |
| Place premiered | Theatre Royal, Melbourne |
| Original language | English |
| Genre | Melodrama |
The Squatter's Daughter or, The Land of the Wattle is a 1907 Australian play by Bert Bailey and Edmund Duggan, writing under the combined pseudonym Albert Edmunds.
The story is set in the 1860s and focuses on the rivalry between two neighbouring sheep stations in rural Australia, "Enderby" and "Waratah". Enderby is owned by a woman, the feisty Violet Enderby, the "squatter's daughter". Waratah is owned by James Harrington, who is Violet's guardian.
Violet is in love with Tom Bathurst, an overseer employed on Waratah. While James Harrington is away, the property is being run by his son, the weak Dudley Harrington, who seeks to undermine Bathurst in the eyes of Violet and his father. Having failed in that he gets bushranger Ben Hall and his gang to abduct Violet and hold her for ransom. Matters are complicated by the presence of an English "new chum", Archie McPherson.
The play was originally produced by William Anderson and made its debut at the Theatre Royal in Melbourne on 9 February 1907, starring both Bailey and Duggan in supporting roles.
Bailey and Duggan received a per performance royalty for their writing rather than selling the play outright, which was a first for Australian playwrights. [2]
The production featured real sheep, kookaburras, shearers, wood choppers, whip-cracking, sheep dogs, a waterfall and a fight between a man and a kangaroo. [3]
It ran for seven weeks then had an equally popular season in Sydney before touring around Australia and New Zealand for the next three years. The producers later claimed during this time it grossed £70,000 and was seen by an estimated 1.5 million people, making it the most popular Australian melodrama to date. [4]
When Bailey went into theatrical management with Julius Grant, his first production was a revival of the play.
Edward William O'Sullivan accused the writers of The Squatter's Daughter of borrowing the story from his play Cooee, or Wild Days in the Australian Bush . [5]
The play was filmed twice, as a silent film in 1910, directed by Bailey, and a sound feature in 1933. It was also adapted into a novel in 1922 by Hilda Bridges.
The play helped popularise the archetype of the "squatter's daughter", the feisty woman of the Australian bush. This character appeared in many subsequent Australian books, plays, films and TV shows, including The Picture Show Man (1977) and McLeod's Daughters (2001-2009).
Kenneth George Hall was an Australian film producer and director, considered one of the most important figures in the history of the Australian film industry. He was the first Australian to win an Academy Award.
On Our Selection is a 1932 comedy based on the Dad and Dave stories by Steele Rudd. These had been turned into a popular play by Bert Bailey and Edmund Duggan in 1912, which formed the basis for the screenplay. Bailey repeats his stage role as Dad Rudd. He also wrote the script with director Ken G. Hall.
The Squatter's Daughter is a 1933 Australian melodrama directed by Ken G. Hall and starring Jocelyn Howarth. One of the most popular Australian films of the 1930s, it is based on a 1907 play by Bert Bailey and Edmund Duggan which had been previously adapted to the screen in 1910.
Albert Edward Bailey, better known as Bert Bailey, was a New Zealand-born Australian playwright, theatrical manager and stage and screen actor best known for playing Dad Rudd, in both mediums, the character from the books penned by Steele Rudd.
Our Friends, the Hayseeds is a 1917 Australian rural comedy from director Beaumont Smith. It centers on the rural family, the Hayseeds, and their rivalry with a neighbouring family, the Duggans.
Edmund Duggan was an Irish-born actor and playwright who worked in Australia. He is best known for writing a number of plays with Bert Bailey including The Squatter's Daughter (1907) and On Our Selection (1912). His solo career was less successful than Bailey's. His sister Eugenie was known as "The Queen of Melodrama" and married noted theatre producer William Anderson, for whom Duggan frequently worked as an actor, writer and stage manager.
On Our Selection is a 1912 Australian play by Bert Bailey and Edmund Duggan based on the stories with the same name by Steele Rudd. Bailey played Dad Rudd in the original production.
Fred MacDonald (1895–1968), was an Australian actor best known for playing Dave Rudd opposite Bert Bailey on stage and screen, starting with the original 1912 production of On Our Selection. He also played a similar role, Jim Hayseed, several times on screen for director Beaumont Smith.
The Squatter's Daughter is a 1910 Australian silent film based on the popular play by Bert Bailey and Edmund Duggan.
The Christian is a 1911 Australian silent film starring Roy Redgrave and Eugenie Duggan. It was the first film directed by Franklyn Barrett. The film was based on Hall Caine's play adapted from his novel The Christian which was published in 1897 and the first British novel to sell one million copies. It is considered a lost film.
A Girl of the Bush is a 1921 Australian silent film directed by Franklyn Barrett. It is one of the few films from Barrett to survive in its entirety today.
The Man from Outback is a 1909 Australian play by Bert Bailey and Edmund Duggan written under the name of 'Albert Edmunds'.
William Anderson was an Australian theatre entrepreneur.
My Mate, or a Bush Love Story is an Australian play by Edmund Duggan which was first produced in 1911.
Eugenie Marian Duggan was a popular Australian stage actress. She was the sister of the actors Edmund, P.J. and Kathleen Duggan. She began studying acting, won a number of elocution competitions and made her professional debut in 1890 in Romeo and Juliet.
The Squatter's Daughter may refer to:
The King's Theatre was a theatre in Melbourne, Australia, located at 133 Russell Street between Bourke Street and Little Collins Street.
Hilda Maggie Bridges was an Australian novelist, short story writer and music teacher.
Thunderbolt is a 1905 Australian play about the bushranger Captain Thunderbolt, based on the book Three Years with Thunderbolt by William Monckton.
The Bushwoman is a 1909 Australian play by Jo Smith. It was a popular early Australian play.