Vivien Talleur
Vivien Talleur (1881-1954) was a dancer, ballet mistress, choreographer and actress.
Biography
Vivien Graham Vowles was born on 30 January 1881 in Cheetham Hill, Manchester to Frank Vowles, a dental surgeon, and his wife, Jeannie White. She was the second of seven daughters and showed an early interest in following a theatrical career. She trained at the ballet school of Alexander Genée, appeared at the Empire in Nottingham as early as December 1900 and is said to have toured with Diaghilev. In 1903 she was in the cast of The School Girl at the Prince of Wales Theatre in London, as was the American operatic baritone W. (William) Talleur Andrews. When, in 1904, George Edwardes and Charles Frohman took The School Girl to New York, both she and Andrews featured in the cast. In 1905 they were in The Catch of the Season and later that year they were married in Camden, New Jersey. After that she adopted Talleur as her stage name.
Between 1906 and 1911 she and Talleur were in a number of musical plays for George Edwardes' theatrical company, including The Belle of Mayfair, The Little Michus, The Merveilleuses, The Merry Widow and The Girl in the Train, notably at the Royal Lyceum Theatre in Edinburgh and the Prince's Theatre in Bristol. In between she gave birth to their son, also William Talleur Andrews. By 1912 both she and Talleur were in Australia, appearing in such works as The Count of Luxembourg and Autumn Manoeuvres, the latter featuring a romantic ballet arranged by her. She also became well known for demonstrating the then somewhat risqué tango, as well as other new dances, such as the turkey trot. She and Fred Reade performed at the popular Tivoli Theatre Tango Teas and their demonstrations were often followed by young women modelling new evening gowns and lingerie.
In July 1915 Vivian G. Andrews applied for a passport at the American Embassy in London, with the intention of travelling to South Africa. Initially she was under contract with J.C. Williamson and appeared as a member of the London Gaiety Company at His Majesty's Theatre in such plays as Mr. Manhattan, The Red Widow and Theodore & Co, but by 1918 she was on the permanent staff of African Theatres. She was not only in charge of the corps de ballet, but staged many of the musical numbers for their revues and frequently performed in such shows. These included productions such as Very Good, Eddie, The Bing Boys Are Here, The Bing Boys on Broadway and Our Miss Gibbs. She also opened a studio of her own, first in a tearoom attached to His Majesty's, but later in the ballroom of the Carlton Hotel. In addition she organised an annual Christmas pantomime.
For African Film Productions she appeared in the film Bond and Word (Dick Cruikshanks/1918) in a not clearly identified role, as well as in H. Lisle Lucoque's version of King Solomon's Mines (1918), in which she played the witch Gagool. In July 1922, Variety reported that after six years in South Africa she was leaving for England, but if she did indeed leave, by 1926 she was back and over the next twenty years she was responsible for the choreography of 22 productions staged by the Johannesburg Operatic and Dramatic Society, including most of the Gilbert and Sullivan operettas. As with many theatrical marriages, Vivien and Talleur’s careers often forced them to live apart and in 1945 the couple were divorced. Vivian Graham Andrews, “old age pensioner”, died on 6 June 1945 in Rosettenville, Johannesburg. (FO)
Sources
The Advertiser, Adelaide, 3 March 1914
The Daily News, Perth, 17 April 1914
Variety, 14 July 1922
Dommisse, Hermien - Long journey of the heart: a memoir
Grut, Marina - The history of ballet in South Africa
Le Roux, André I. & Fourie, Lilla – Filmverlede: geskiedenis van die Suid-Afrikaanse speelfilm
Racster, Olga - Curtain up!
Woolfson, Malcolm - But the melody lingers on
http://special.lib.gla.ac.uk/sta/search/detailp.cfm?NID=60691&EID=21795&DID=&AID=
Return to
Return to ESAT Personalities T
Return to South African Personalities
Return to The ESAT Entries
Return to Main Page
