Freda Stark
Encyclopedia
Freda Stark was a New Zealand dancer, and a prosecution witness
after the prescription drug
overdose of her lover, Thelma Mareo, in 1935. During the Second World War, she was a famed exotic dancer
at Auckland
's Wintergarden cabaret and nightclub, and a favourite of American troops stationed there, where she earned the title "Fever of the Fleet."
and Epsom Girls Grammar School after her parents shifted to Auckland shortly after her birth. Her father encouraged her to learn dance, and she began to do so at nine years of age.
After leaving school, Stark worked as a clerical worker by day, and danced as "L'Etoile" during the evenings, and her repertoire included tap, high kicks, tumbles and hula. During the 1930s, she also learned classical ballet, as steps toward an advanced examination certificate at New Zealand's Academy of Dance, which she acquired in the late thirties.
Mareo was tried twice for the murder of Trott, was twice found guilty, and was twice sentenced to death by hanging, (later commuted to 12 years in prison).
Stark was a prosecution witness at both trials and had to endure being outed as a lesbian
, and constant subsequent accusations that she had given either mistaken or selective testimony while under oath. Nude photographs of Stark were reproduced during the trial, but Stark remained unperturbed, and was later described as a model Crown witness.
clad only in a feather headdress, a g-string and gold bodypaint. The appreciative American Expeditionary troops bestowed the title "Fever of the Fleet" on Stark, and often booked out the Wintergarden specifically to attend her performances, hiring an accompanying band and floorshow at the same time.
.
During the 1990s there was renewed interest in her days as a dancer, and her life was celebrated in a biography Freda Stark: Her Extraordinary Life and in Peter Wells
and Stewart Mains' documentary, The Mighty Civic (1989). Stark died in the Abbey Heights Rest Home in Massey, Auckland
, in March 1999.
Witness
A witness is someone who has firsthand knowledge about an event, or in the criminal justice systems usually a crime, through his or her senses and can help certify important considerations about the crime or event. A witness who has seen the event first hand is known as an eyewitness...
after the prescription drug
Prescription drug
A prescription medication is a licensed medicine that is regulated by legislation to require a medical prescription before it can be obtained. The term is used to distinguish it from over-the-counter drugs which can be obtained without a prescription...
overdose of her lover, Thelma Mareo, in 1935. During the Second World War, she was a famed exotic dancer
Exotic dancer
The terms exotic dancer and exotic dance can have different meanings in different parts of the world and depending on context. In the erotic sense, "exotic dance" is a often used to refer to practitioners of striptease...
at Auckland
Auckland
The Auckland metropolitan area , in the North Island of New Zealand, is the largest and most populous urban area in the country with residents, percent of the country's population. Auckland also has the largest Polynesian population of any city in the world...
's Wintergarden cabaret and nightclub, and a favourite of American troops stationed there, where she earned the title "Fever of the Fleet."
Early life
Born in Kaeo in 1910, Freda Stark was the daughter of James Stark, a shopkeeper, and Isabella Bramley. She attended St Benedict's SchoolMarcellin College, Auckland
Marcellin College is an integrated, co-educational college in Royal Oak, Auckland, New Zealand for students in Year 7 to Year 13. Marcellin College was founded by the Marist Brothers in 1958 as a secondary school for boys only. The school is located on spacious grounds which were formerly part of...
and Epsom Girls Grammar School after her parents shifted to Auckland shortly after her birth. Her father encouraged her to learn dance, and she began to do so at nine years of age.
After leaving school, Stark worked as a clerical worker by day, and danced as "L'Etoile" during the evenings, and her repertoire included tap, high kicks, tumbles and hula. During the 1930s, she also learned classical ballet, as steps toward an advanced examination certificate at New Zealand's Academy of Dance, which she acquired in the late thirties.
Mareo murder trials
In 1933, Stark joined Ernest Rolls' revue, and met a young dancer named Thelma Trott, and the two women fell in love. In 1934, Stark was in the chorus of the Duchess of Danitz, while Trott starred. At this time, Trott married Eric Mareo, their conductor. The relationship was cut short in 1935 when Trott took a fatal overdose of the prescription drug Veronal in unexplained circumstances, leading to Mareo being charged with her murder.Mareo was tried twice for the murder of Trott, was twice found guilty, and was twice sentenced to death by hanging, (later commuted to 12 years in prison).
Stark was a prosecution witness at both trials and had to endure being outed as a lesbian
Lesbian
Lesbian is a term most widely used in the English language to describe sexual and romantic desire between females. The word may be used as a noun, to refer to women who identify themselves or who are characterized by others as having the primary attribute of female homosexuality, or as an...
, and constant subsequent accusations that she had given either mistaken or selective testimony while under oath. Nude photographs of Stark were reproduced during the trial, but Stark remained unperturbed, and was later described as a model Crown witness.
"Fever of the Fleet"
During the Second World War, Stark was a clerical worker at the Colonial Ammunition Company during the day. At night, she entertained New Zealand and American troops at the Wintergarden cabaret and nightclub. At times, she wasclad only in a feather headdress, a g-string and gold bodypaint. The appreciative American Expeditionary troops bestowed the title "Fever of the Fleet" on Stark, and often booked out the Wintergarden specifically to attend her performances, hiring an accompanying band and floorshow at the same time.
Postwar career
After the Second World War, Stark relocated to London, where she met and married Harold Robinson, a New Zealand-born dancer (and himself a gay man) at Sadler's Wells. The duo starred together in New Zealand-born Robert Steele's art film, Curves and Contrasts (1947), before their marriage ended by mutual consent. They did not divorce until 1973 and remained close friends. Although based in the United Kingdom, Stark frequently revisited New Zealand, before she returned permanently in 1970, and became a secretary at the University of AucklandUniversity of Auckland
The University of Auckland is a university located in Auckland, New Zealand. It is the largest university in the country and the highest ranked in the 2011 QS World University Rankings, having been ranked worldwide...
.
During the 1990s there was renewed interest in her days as a dancer, and her life was celebrated in a biography Freda Stark: Her Extraordinary Life and in Peter Wells
Peter Wells (New Zealand)
Peter Wells is an award-winning writer and filmmaker from New Zealand.Although today he is mainly known for his fiction, Peter Wells has explored his interest in gay and historical themes, in a number of expressive drama and documentary films since the 1980s.The first and last feature film made...
and Stewart Mains' documentary, The Mighty Civic (1989). Stark died in the Abbey Heights Rest Home in Massey, Auckland
Massey, New Zealand
Massey is a north-western suburb of the Auckland conurbation. It was formerly a northern suburb of Waitakere City which existed from 1989 to 2010, before being replaced by the Auckland Council. The suburb was named after former Prime Minister of New Zealand William Massey...
, in March 1999.
Filmography
- Peter Wells and Stewart Main (directors)The Mighty Civic: Wellington: New Zealand Film Commission: 1989: Video, VHS format, 62 mins.