Show-Girl: The Staging of Lotti Wilmott

Abstract

Madame Lotti Wilmot knew how to give a gentleman a good thrashing. She was quick to reach for a supple cane when crossed, so it may not have been a surprise to anyone when an argument outside the Papanui Town Hall turned physical. It was November 1881 and "the celebrated lecturess and advanced progressionist" was in Christchurch, giving Sunday evening talks at the Papanui Town Hall. As an avowed freethinker, Lotti loved to goad the local religious establishment by speaking on a Sunday evening and charging admission to her lectures.

If her previous visit to Canterbury was anything to go by, Lotti‘s lectures were sure to attract interest. With titles such as "Forbidden Fruit," "Courtship and Marriage," "The Social Evil" or "His Majesty the Devil," the audience knew they would hear something provocative or startling. More titillating content could be expected in Lotti‘s exposé of the seamier side of city life in "Christchurch by Day and Christchurch by Night." Whatever the topic, Lotti would use it as a platform for illustrating the hypocrisies of clergy, Christians in general, local worthies and upstanding citizens. It was no wonder her talks met with applause and umbrage in equal measure.