Federici: Princess Theatre Ghost Federici: Princess Theatre Ghost

Melbourne's best known ghost is that of Italian-born British opera singer Anatole Baker or his stage name - Federici of the Princess Theatre.

Federici was the stage name of Anatole Frederick Demidoff Baker born in Florence, Italy. (22 April 1850 - 3 March 1888)

Ghost stories from Melbourne's Princess Theatre

Jesse Cain from Melbourne's Princess Theatre explains that the venue is host to a sensational supernatural citizen.

The Princess Theatre opened its doors in 1854 and is famous as Melbourne's home for international musical productions.

As with many great performance venues, the Princess plays host to its own resident ghost. The spirit of the actor Frederick Federici has been haunting the theatre enthusiastically since 1888. Jesse, the theatre's business development manager, gives us the lowdown on Federici's fabulous fate.

Federici's final curtain call

"It's a terrific story, although not so terrific for him! His real name was Frederick Baker, but he went under the stage name of Frederick Federici," Jesse says. "He came out to Australia in the mid-1880s to perform various operas and operettas around the country, which is how he found his way to Melbourne and in a production of Faust at the Princess Theatre. The opening night was the third of March 1888, and Federici was playing the role of Mephistopheles. The play finishes with Mephistopheles and Faust descending into hell through a trapdoor in the stage. As Federici went through the trapdoor the audience is reported to have noticed that he was slumped over slightly. He had actually suffered a heart attack and died at that exact moment. For an actor, he had a very good sense of timing!"

Jesse explains that the rest of the cast had no idea and went back out onstage for the curtain call to take their bows as usual. "It wasn't until after they had left the stage it was discovered dear old Fred had passed on. The spooky thing was that everyone at the performance, including the cast, swore he had actually been there onstage for the curtain call, taking his bows with the rest of the cast," he says.

The ghost of Federici remains present

In what must be one of the more extreme manifestations of the adage "the show must go on", Federici had immediately returned from the dead so as not to miss the adulation of the crowd. Jesse explains that the spirit has been encountered many more times over the years. Bert Newton, Marina Prior, Lisa McCune and many of the venue's everyday staff have also reported experiences.

While this all might seem pretty creepy, Jesse insists that Federici is not a threatening spirit. The theatre even has a tradition of saving him a seat for every opening night performance.

"Fred is very much a benevolent presence, nothing nasty ever happens. He's more of a friendly poltergeist," he says.

Source: whatsonblog.melbourne.vic.gov.au
Posted 15 April 2016 in Culture, Places

The spine-tingling tale of Federici, the ghost of the Princess Theatre

Legend has it this famed opera singer was seen giving his final bows on stage at the Princess Theatre minutes after he died.

It seems fitting the historic Princess Theatre where the smash-hit Andrew Lloyd Webber musical was staged has its very own "Phantom of the Opera" .

British opera singer and actor Frederick Baker, aged 38, known by his stage name Federici, was performing in a production of the opera Faust on March 3, 1888, when tragedy struck.

It was during the finale in which Federici, playing Mephistopheles, descended to "hell" amid smoke and flames that he suffered a heart attack while being lowered through a trapdoor.

And while many ghost stories don't emerge until decades after the person's death, the first sighting of Federici's ghost was reported the very night he died.

Ben Oliver, founder of Melbourne's Drinking History Tours, says Federici was rushed backstage to the green room after his heart attack and resuscitation was attempted, but he died soon after.

He says neither the audience nor cast realised what had happened and management waited until after the final curtain call before breaking the tragic news.

"But when management told the actors what had happened, the actors asked, 'Well, when did this happen?' And they said, 'Well, after his final scene, we took him backstage but he passed away,'" Oliver says.

"And the actors said, 'Well, no, that's impossible, because Federici was onstage with us giving his curtain call to the audience.'

"So this is, I guess you might say, the first sighting of the ghost of Federici. Moments after his death, he allegedly is back on stage with his fellow actors giving one final bow to the audience."

The spirit of the Italian-born singer has been supposedly haunting the theatre enthusiastically ever since, with many reported sightings over the years by performers and staff.

In a longstanding tradition, a seat was always saved for Federici's ghost on each opening night of a new production, as it was for the classic Phantom of the Opera, which tells of an entity believed to haunt a Paris opera house.

It's been reported some of our biggest names in showbiz, including Bert Newton, Marina Prior and Lisa McCune, have experienced eerie encounters with Federici's ghost.

"Whether you believe in ghosts or not, when you have that number of people who all claim to have heard or felt or seen something, particularly when they're quite well-known , it makes it hard to challenge the veracity of these claims," Oliver says.

Federici is the subject of the second episode in the Haunted Melbourne series of the In Black and White podcast on Australia's forgotten characters.



Source: Jen Kelly | In Black & White
November 26, 2020 - Herald Sun

❊ Venue | Location ❊

 Princess Theatre [ view ]
 163 Spring Street, Melbourne Victoria 3000 View Map
 Telephone: +61 3 9299 9800

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❊ Web Links ❊

➼ Federici: Princess Theatre Ghost 

❊ Also See... ❊

➼ Federici Bistro - Princess Theatre

➼ Ghost of Old Melbourne Gaol?

➼ In Black and White: Podcast Series






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