MILESAGO - Venues

MILESAGO: Australasian Music & Popular Culture 1964-1975

Venues

OPUS

Location:
Ormond Hall
Moubray St, Sth Yarra, Vic.

Operation:
1960s

Promoters:
Bill Joseph

Compere (1960s):
Dennis Smith

History

Opus was one the top 1960s Melbourne dances events, operating alongside leading discotheques such as Berties, Sebastians, Thumpin' Tum, Catcher and Garrison.

Like the TF Much Ballroom, Opus was a dance promotion, rather than the actual name of the venue. Opus events were staged at the Ormond Hall in Prahran, one of several large 19th century community halls that were co-opted for pop music concerts and dances in this period, inlcuding Cathedral Hall (venue for the TF Much and Much More Ballroom events). In the 1970s Ormond Hall was the venue for the Reefer Cabaret.

According to Mike Rudd, Opus was promoted by Bill Joseph. The Joseph brothers were leading figures on the Melbourne music scene -- Jeff Joseph managed Ronnie Burns and co-managed Zoot in the late 1960s and David Joseph managed Procession and produced the TV pop show UpTight.

As the Go-Set ads shown above indicate, many of the leading acts of the day played at Opus, and one of its most famous concerts was the farewell performance by The Loved Ones in October 1967.

References / Links

Patrick Dononvan
"Halls for hire, historic cred for free"
The Age, Melbourne, 11 August 2004
http://www.theage.com.au/articles/2004/08/11/1092102506402.html

Ian McFarlane
Encyclopedia of Australia Rock & Pop
http://www.whammo.com.au/encyclopediaList.asp

Noel McGrath
Australian Encyclopedia of Rock (Outback Press, 1978)