The Divine Sarah's visit to Australia was a truly big event with loads of publicity and and wild crowds of welcome. This thoroughly researched and lively account of the tour is a theatrical chronicle of the times, illustrating the state of the theatre, the variety of the journalism, drama criticism and critical debate, and the

The Divine Sarah, recognised as the world's greatest actress, is at the centre of this book, but the story it tells is much wider. Corille Fraser's lively writing and her eye for the apt contemporary quotation transport the reader to Sydney, Melbourne and Adelaide in the late nineteenth century where J C Williamson presented sell-out seasons. The book captures the theatrical climate of the day showing the public response, the critical debate, the management and commercial arrangements, the costumes, the other players and the touring conditions for a large company with 200 tons of scenery and costumes.