“Stage hand” is an inclusive term used to refer to people (mostly men) carrying out different tasks backstage in live theatre. The term can include stage mechanics, carpenters, property men (or boys), electricians, scenic artists, and many other jobs. Some of these jobs were preparatory (costume design and scenic artistry), while others happened while the play unfolded (scene movers and lighting). One thing that all of these people had in common, however, was that unlike the cast of plays, stage hands were typically invisible to the audience.
Beginning in 1904, with the establishment of the IATSE (International Alliance of Theatrical Stage Employees), Local 118, Vancouver stage hands were protected by a labour union. The IATSE included “stage managers” among those it covered. These managers were not considered “management” in the labour relations sense of the word.
Early Stage Hands
I’m showing below the very basic bios I have been able to assemble (principally from local newspapers; also from Royal B.C. Archives and city directories). It is probably safe to assume that if there is no press citation then the source is either the provincial archives or a city directory. The list is in no particular order. The concluding paragraph shows those for whom I have even less information. I wanted to include them; it seemed wrong to leave them out just because I wasn’t able to put together much information about their lives.
James Roderick (Rod) Martin (1889-1973). Martin’s first occupation was in the hotel business. He was a partner with William Routley in ownership of the landmark Coquitlam Hotel on the south side of Dewdney Trunk Road across the street from the CPR Depot. The hotel burned in the big Port Coquitlam fire of 1920 (World 6 Aug 1920). It isn’t clear whether the fire made his mind up to go into the theatre biz or if he’d already made that decision before the fire, but he seems to have made the leap by the 1920s. He married Alice May Welcher (1894-1977) in 1914 when they were still living in Port Coquitlam.
Walter Henry Blake (1887-1957). He began his working life as a Vaudevillian “hoofer” (slang for tap dancer) (Province 4 Nov 1939). He started his backstage career at People’s Theatre around the turn of the 20th century, moved to the original Pantages after that, and in the ‘30s, he worked the Beacon Theatre. He retired four years before his death, leaving a job as utility man at Theatre Under the Stars in the early ‘50s. He was known in the trade as a “flyman,” the stage hand who handles the fly ropes (Sun 4 Sept 1957). Blake married Janet Davis.
George D. Collins. This gent may not “count” strictly speaking as a stage hand, as he was an independent carpentry contractor from Montreal, but I’m including him because he was largely responsible for the construction and outfitting of the Vancouver Opera House, our first fully-outfitted playhouse. Collins later was an advance man for Bronson and Derville’s comedy company (which was a short-lived outfit) (News-Advertiser 9 Dec 1891).
Gordon Charles (Mutt) Martin (1886-1956). He worked backstage at the Pantages (it isn’t clear which one), Beacon, and Orpheum (again, it isn’t clear which one) Theatres (Sun, 6 March 1956). He was at the Capitol in the 1950s (Sun, 6 Sept 1955). Mutt was married to May Halley.
John C. Kloos (1856-1935). An early stage manager employed by Ernest R. Ricketts at the Vancouver Opera House from 1903-1906. He was brought by Ricketts to Vancouver from the United States (one of Kloos’s recent jobs was in Pittsburgh, Kansas) and was praised greatly for the wide experience and technical ability which he brought to the local stage.
Kloos was wise enough to see the value of continuing ed among stage hands, but savvy enough to know that doing so in a classroom setting would not be productive. What he needed was something practical. So he arranged for stage hands at the Vancouver Opera House to take on their colleagues at the People’s Theatre in a stage-setting contest:
The People’s Theatre crew went at it first, and set a handsome “interior” scene in exactly seven minutes. Then they struck it again [presumably, this means they dismantled the scene] in four minutes. The Opera House crew then undertook the same stunt, but they were ten seconds longer in setting. The work of both crews was then criticized by Mr. Kloos….
Province 26 June 1905
The People’s Theatre crew won.
Kloos was also instrumental in bringing the IATSE to Vancouver and he served on the local’s executive. He left B.C. in 1906 for San Francisco. Kloos was married to Lillie Stober. He died in Highland Park, California, a suburb of Los Angeles.
Albert Henry (Harry) Robins (1884-1960). He came to Vancouver from London, England in 1901. He was the property man for awhile at the old Pantages Theatre and later went to work in the Empress and Columbia Theatres (Province 6 Jan 1960). He was married to Elizabeth Angel (1891-1989).
Frank Coates. He was a carpenter in the Empress Theatre who was crippled in an accident that occurred there in 1909. At the end of the play called “A Message from Mars”, Coates fell from “his place in the flies” some 30 feet to the stage floor, but evidently suffered no broken bones (Province 29 Oct 1909).
Frank Woodruff. A stage hand at the Imperial Theatre in 1913, he suffered a scary snake bite as part of the Sherlock Holmes play, “The Speckled Band”. During the final act of the play, apparently, a “giant cobra” sunk its fangs into Woodruff’s forearm. A doctor was called and gave him immediate attention and he evidently didn’t suffer long term effects (World 27 Nov 1913).
William Henry (Buck) Taylor (1882-1966). He began his life in the entertainment biz by becoming a call boy at age 11 in the Vancouver Opera House (Province 15 Dec 1966). He became a full-time stage hand in 1903 and went on to work in that capacity in most local theatres. Taylor’s specialization was as a stage electrician, but he truly was a “stage hand” in the fullest sense, and could (and did) turn his hand to most anything. In a Province feature (by later CBC radio luminary, Clyde Gilmour), Taylor’s professional life was described. In particular, his time as senior stage hand at the Strand Theatre in the ‘40s. At a concert, if the grand piano lid had to be lifted during the concert, Taylor would stroll onto the stage to do the deed and would then take a bow before the audience, who would invariably clap (Province 16 Jan 1948). He was married to Della Garland (1898-1963).
Sidney (Sid) A. Summers (?-1958). He was a stage carpenter at the Orpheum in 1921 (World 23 July 1921). Apparently, during Harry Belafonte’s tour which included Vancouver (at the Queen Elizabeth Theatre) in the 1950s, Belafonte “begged” to have Summers join his team for the balance of his tour through the Pacific Northwest, so impressed was he with the skills of the veteran stage hand (Sun 27 July 1963). Whether Belafonte’s pleas were met with an affirmative isn’t clear. Summers was married to Mary Cody (1888-1968).
William (Wallace) Copp (1878-1938). Copp was a stage carpenter at People’s Theatre in 1905. He was struck by a piece of scenery and rendered unconscious. It was quite some time before he revived (World 17 Feb 1905). He married Manilla Woodworth in 1909.
Crop of CVA 132-3.
Jack McCance (1886-1962) was Gail McCance’s father, written up here. Arthur Elwood was stage hand at the Royal Theatre in 1919. W. J. Park (1880-?) was stage hand at Pantages Theatre in 1923. John Hood (1875–?) was a stage hand at Orpheum Theatre (on west side of 700 block Granville) in 1923. Jack Andrews was a stage carpenter in 1923. Jack Anderson was a stage hand at the Empress Theatre in 1919. James Barr was a stage hand at the Empress Theatre in 1919. Reginald Patrick Devine was a stage hand in 1928 (Province 20 Sept 1928). Gordon Martin was a stage hand at the Imperial and Beacon Theatres (Province 13 June 1941). He was also a stage hand at the Empress Theatre in 1926. Frederick William (Bill) Baker (1869-1907) was an early stage hand. Ira Parks was the property man at the Empress Theatre in its early years (Province 13 May 1940). Frederick Collins was a stage carpenter in 1910. Bernard (Barney) McGlone (1882-1937) trod the other side of the stage during the performance of “Rob Roy” in which he played the part of Andrew Fairservice (Province 24 Feb 1912). He was a stage hand at the original Pantages in 1919. Ernest Glover was a scenic artist at the Lyric (at Pender and Hamilton) for the Howard Stock Company in 1908. Harry Spear (?-1942) was a stage hand in Vancouver theatres. He died in San Francisco where he was living with his family at the time. Frankie Killain was a stage carpenter at Capitol Theatre in 1927. A. J. Theal was a scenic artist working at the Empress Theatre in 1908. Edgar McKie (?-1918) was a scenic artist in Vancouver where he painted the production scenery for F. Stuart Whyte’s pantos, “Aladdin” and “Robinson Crusoe” (World 14 Feb 1918) and in his later years in Calgary, where he died. George Birrell started out as a stage mechanic and became stage manager at the People’s Theatre (Province 20 Nov 1905). “Fats” Robinson was an early stage hand (Province, 1 May 1965). Adoniran (Ad) Nehemiah Harrington (1871-1918) was the leading stage hand at the Avenue Theatre in his later years (World, 19 April 1918). O.D. Bailey was stage director at the Lyric in 1910. Ferry Creon was stage manager at the National Theatre in 1910. James B. Norton was assistant stage manager at the Lyric in 1910. Henry Russell was stage manager at the Grand Theatre in 1910. Frank Woodworth was stage manager at the Grand Theatre in 1906 and at the Orpheum in 1910. He was awarded the Military Medal for service during the Great War (World, 12 Nov 1921). Alfred Levi Harmon Harrington (1873-1957) worked backstage at the Empress, Avenue and Imperial Theatres; at the original and new Pantages, at the Vancouver Opera House and the Grand Theatre. He finished up at the Theatre Under the Stars. He married Susan Lutz. Bob Taylor was stage carpenter at the Orpheum in 1921 (World 23 July 1921).
Vancouver As It Was: A Photo-Historical Journey 
Thanks, M.
Fascinating – it’s fun to hear about some of those behind-the-scenes details
Kind regards
Thanks, AA. Pleased that you enjoyed this.