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The Writers
The
operetta Collits’ Inn was written by two frequent
visitors to the Inn, Isobel Varney Monk and Thomas
Stuart Gurr. Monk and Gurr lived in Mosman and were neighbours. They loved
the Inn, and their names appear often in the early
visitor’s books.
Early performances
Collits’ Inn
had its premiere on the 11th, 12th and 13th of March, 1932, at the Mosman
Town Hall.  This
was followed by a professional season at Melbourne’s
Princess Theatre in 1933 and then in Sydney
at the New Tivoli Theatre in 1934. The star of both productions was Gladys
Moncrieff, the most famous Australian singer of the day, who played the
lead role of Mary Collits. George Wallace, also a famous performer, played
the comic part of Dandy Dick.
The production ran for several weeks in both cities. It was also
performed in several amateur productions and as a radio play three times on
the ABC.
The story
 The operetta tells the story of
Pierce and Mary Collits’ daughter, Amelia, whose character is called Mary
in the play. Mary is caught in a triangle of love. She is being pursued by
Robert Keane, a bushranger, but loves a redcoat officer named Captain
John Lake.
Ultimately, Captain Lake
kills the bushranger and lives happily ever after with Mary.
In real life, Amelia was married at the age of 19 to John Skeen, who was
38. The wedding was held on the
29th of June, 1832, and the couple ran their own Inn
at Little Hartley.
Further details of the tale are available in The Story of Collits’ Inn
by Stewart & Aitken.
Memorabilia
 The original
producer of the operetta was Frank Thring, who was himself a major name in
Australian theatre. He retained an interest in the operetta until the end
of his life, when he was planning a stage production (also to be filmed) in
England.
All arrangements were almost complete when he sadly fell ill and died. The
idea was then abandoned.
The operetta has therefore never been filmed, but there are sound
recordings. A nitrate tape was found under Varney Monk’s daughter’s bed
when she died. Varney’s granddaughter kindly gave the tape to the National
Library, who have reproduced it. Original advertisements for the musical
can be found in 1934 newspapers in the History Room.
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