History
Hobart Gang Show is Tasmania’s only Gang Show made up of youth members from Scouts and Guides of Hobart and surrounding areas. Young people, aged from 11, may be involved with writing the script, music, songs and costumes as well as perform. Youth aged from 16 may also be involved with choreography, assist with directing, work backstage or perform in the show. All helpers are volunteers often being parents, leaders, former cast or youth members.
What is a Gang Show?
Gang Show is Scouts and Guides youth theatre. It is an amateur theatrical performance where the cast is made up of serving youth members of Scouts and Guides. The aim of the show is to give young people in Scouting and Guiding the opportunity to develop performance skills and to perform in a close to professional theatrical environment under the auspices of the Performing Arts Section of Scouting. Backstage personnel are made up of those in Scouting, Guiding, former Gang Show members or parents. Youth have the opportunity to be involved in all aspects of the theatre to gain experience and training.
Beginnings
The very first Gang Show was performed in London in October 1932. It was written by a then Rover Scout - the late Ralph Reader C.B.E., M.B.E., a Broadway and London West End professional producer, choreographer and song writer. Ralph was asked to write a scout-themed show to help raise funds for a Scout Camp swimming pool. The show, with only a small audience, was not a huge success but it raised enough money for the pool. It also caught the attention of Lord Baden Powell (Scouting’s founder) who attended the 2nd performance. He could see the show’s importance in teaching different but equally valuable skills.
The Gang Show name comes from a comment made during the first show when a cast member responded to a call to attention with “Aye Aye skip, the Gang’s all here!” This comment contributed to the show title The Gang’s All Here and the secondary show The Gang Comes Back, finally culminating in The Gang Show in 1934.
The London Gang Show was the first amateur production to command a Royal Variety Performance, performing three times for the reigning monarch in 1937, 1957 and 1964.
During World War 2 Gang Shows themselves ceased and instead became troop entertainment, organized by Ralph Reader as the R.A.F. Gang Show and had such notaries as Dick Emery, Peter Sellers, Tony Hancock and Norrie Paramour amongst the cast. London Gang Show returned in 1950 until its final curtain in 1974. Ralph passed away in 1982.
Red Scarf
When the Gang Show started in London in 1932, Ralph decided the cast should be organised as a Scout Troop; a successful arrangement which still persists in most Shows today. Members of the first Gang Show Troop wanted an identifying feature, with somebody deciding on a scarlet scarf. The scarlet scarf has become a worldwide symbol of Gang Shows with an insignia in gold thread.
Hobart Gang Show History
HOBART GANG SHOW began in July 1956 after local Scouting personalities had seen the production in Melbourne and decided that we should have one here. These shows (with an all-male cast at the time) continued annually up to and including 1969 when the show went into recess.
In 1964, Hobart Gang Show was proud to receive a message from Ralph Reader himself, wishing us good luck in our show. This was no doubt an exciting message for the cast and crew to recieve.
Following a trial District Concert in 1990, Don Fitzpatrick placed an advertisement in the local newspaper to find people interested in Gang Show. This brought a response from David Swann who had experience on the technical side and he agreed to help in this area. Don worked out the score and was going to be director. He then advertised for cast from Scouts and Guides – and anyone who applied was accepted to the cast. Don had found a pianist to help out with music and with no-one else to help, they struggled through together after the show’s 21 year break.
The groups involved in this show were …
Rovers:
Hobart District Rover Crew
Venturers:
1st Battery Point; 1st New Town; 1st Sandy Bay; 1st Taroona
Scouts:
1st Bridgewater; 1st Derwent, 1st Lenah Valley; 1st Lindisfarne; 1st Montagu Bay; 1st New Town; 1st Sandy Bay; 1st Taroona
Cubs:
1st Huntingfield
Guides:
2nd Hobart; 1st Lindisfarne; 1st Linwood; 2nd Lenah Valley, 1st New Town; 1st Sandford
Don was instrumental in seeing the show revived in 1991 and the words from that program say it all...
“1991 will, we hope, be the first of a long run of new Hobart Gang Shows. This will mean that now every capital city in Australia, plus New Zealand cities all have their own Gang Show adding to Ralph Reader’s claim that “Every night of every year somewhere in the world a GANG SHOW is playing …”
The next two years followed in similar fashion with Don putting in many hours (and probably many dollars) to enable the show to get going. By year three there were some sixty in the cast and by year seven it topped at eighty cast. Sadly in 2024 Don Passed away, but the Hobart Gang Show story continues on and may it continue into the future.
Other directors have include David Swann (1996 – 2002), Lance Cowled, Leon Chick, Lyn Harvey, Georgie Boon (2011) and Tim Swann (2012 & 2013). In 2014 the role of Director was split between 12 people for 9 skits as a number of young, youth members were given the opportunity to direct a skit with guidance from other directors (Naomie Heaven, Stuart Nichols, Craig Millsom, David Henwood, Tim Swann, Becky Barry, Ellena Watkins, Laura Walter, Damian Mazur, Amberlei Beresford and Julia Walter). Tony Webb took on Performance Director in 2015 and Skit Director in 2016 with Tracey Adams taking on the role of Director from 2016.
Originally, all the material used in Hobart Gang Show was written by Ralph Reader. In 2011 Hobart Gang Show cast and crew members participated in a series of writers’ workshops under guidance from Andrew Taylor and Daniella Taglieri (from Camberwell Showtime in Melbourne). The end result was a show with a theme (as opposed to the standard revue format) with all the skits written by our own people. Since then, script writing workshops are run by Hobart Gang Show and the youth write the script.
Hobart Gang Show has consistently performed some Ralph Reader songs each year but has also included many more, original songs. These have be mostly written by the Musical Director, Lance Cowled (1991-2021) along with the Assistant Musical Director, Adrian Reader (no relation to Ralph!).
In 2014, for the first time, some youth enjoyed learning about writing music and under the guidance of Angus Davison, song writing workshops were held and the small team were delighted to produce their first piece of music for the show “Pegleg on the Dance floor”. This was an immediate hit with everyone and after the curtain went down on the show, it was then performed at the City Of Clarence Eisteddfod (Vocal Group with Costume & Action 16 years and under), to be awarded 1st prize with the adjudicator’s comments reading
“That was certainly an opening! Bright and energetic. The movement was very well rehearsed – good solo lines ‘ ‘dialogue’ could be heard and the actors had character – A show stopper – well done”
The show also features some well-known songs … something for everyone. The orchestra is made up of youth members and others from the Clarence City Band, Derwent Valley Concert Band and Derwent Symphony Orchestra. In 2022 Lance and Adrian reversed their roles, with both continuing to write original pieces for each show. Hobart Gang Show is privileged to have such talent right here in Hobart.
Since 2011, once the curtain is down on one show, interested youth of Scouting and Girl Guides start writing the script for the next show. In 2020 of course things had to be put on hold as Covid hit, but with the opportunity to “see what we can do” a much smaller cast didn’t let Covid stop them. Online auditions held, a few new skits written and rehearsals held online! It was a challenge, but a dedicated cast and crew, pulled it off and while many other Gang Shows across Australia were cancelling, Hobart Gang Show performed online (albeit a shorter show) in August, giving encouragement to many across Australia as their own shows were cancelled. The highlight was The Scout Hymn, with only one rehearsal (Covid distancing rules in place!) and then recorded. This recording went on to be selected as part of an International (on line) Gang Show the same year. Was it worth the extra effort – yes!
Hobart Gang Show has also performed successfully in Eisteddfods, Relay for Life, a Girl Guides Trefoil Guild National event and Scout AGMs.
The production of a full-scale show in a theatre is a tremendous opportunity to be involved in, and a great challenge for all who participate. Over the years Hobart Gang Show has provided this opportunity to hundreds of Tasmania’s young people (aged from 11 years). Every year youth of Scouting and Guiding are being given the training, and an excellent learning environment in which to develop and hone their theatrical skills. This can include singing, dancing, acting, playing music, sound, lighting, costumes, choreography, writing the script, directing or one of the many other areas that make up Gang Show (and theatre).
The show (firstly 1956-1969) and now, has been performing every year since1991. Hobart Gang Show is very much looking forward to its 50th season in 2026.