With the region celebrating the 150th anniversary of the
discovery of gold this year, Remarkable Theatre is joining in
with a mixture of gold-rush history and tall tales in its
Queenstown Gardens production Greed, Glamour and Grudges -
Tales of Gold. Joe Dodgshun talks to cast member Sam Farr
about the pioneering Wakatipu characters he plays.
Sam Farr as Charles Thatcher.
Charles Thatcher was an entertainer from Bristol,
England, who heeded the call of Australia's gold rush, and as
many did, made his way to New Zealand once Australia's fortunes
dried up.
After performing his parodies in Dunedin, Auckland and
Wellington, Thatcher made his way to Queenstown in 1867, says
the man playing him, Sam Farr.
"He performed for 10 years out in the Theatre Royale in
Arrowtown, writing songs over popular tunes and was
apparently very popular at the time," Mr Farr said.
The "Inimitable" Thatcher. Photos supplied.
Wherever he travelled, he would write a song about the
place and in doing so created a long list of regional folk
songs, such as
The Old Identities and
Farewell to
Hokitika.
He was introduced as "the great wit, the humorous and
undeniably satirical, the one and only - the Inimitable
Thatcher!", and accompanied by his wife, singer Madam
Vitelli.
Mr Farr says Thatcher's popularity did not stretch to the
upper class of Dunedin, whom he regularly ridiculed in
performances, much to the delight of the gold-miners.
He formed a small theatre troupe which travelled to entertain
the diggers.
Mr Farr plays several roles in the production, including the
Prince of Aragon.
A graduate of the Queenstown Resort College, Mr Farr moved to
Queenstown from Timaru in 2008 to study and has worked in the
Queenstown hotel industry since.
"At school I was really into drama. So I made sure I made
some contacts here and have been performing here since 2009
... and why would you want to leave?"
He said the production was "shaping up well" to be a mix of
entertainment, history and drama.
"It's just a good way to spend a sunny afternoon in the
Queenstown Gardens if the weather permits - and it's looking
like it will."
• The eight-performance season of Greed, Glamour and
Grudges - Tales of Gold starts tonight with performances
at 6pm and 8pm.
There are also performances at 2pm, 4pm and 6pm tomorrow and
Sunday.
Entry is by gold coin donation.
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