‘Janice Usherwood and the Usherettes’ entertained Australian equestrian audiences from 1987 to 2000. Image supplied.
The dictionary describes an usherette as a female worker in a cinema or theatre whose job is to show people to their seats and sell snacks or drinks. But in the Australian equestrian arena, Janice Usherwood’s Usherettes made people get out of their seats – and cheer!
For decades prominent Australian sports have had pre-match or half-time entertainment during their finals. Most performances have been fine, others not so much. Who can forget Barry Crocker singing The Impossible Dream at the AFL? Billy Idol not singing at all because the NRL’s sound system broke? And Meatloaf when he was decidedly off at the MCG?
Australian dressage doesn’t enjoy such major media recognition, but the sport has always held state and national championships in large public venues. And 30 years ago, providing the entertainment at those venues was Janice Usherwood, on her palomino stallion, and The Usherettes. This unique troupe performed around the country in an era when dressage spectator seating was full, there was standing room only and audiences would clap along with the music.
Janice, now in her 70s, wasn’t born into the entertainment industry; her family was on the land. For 11 years she was an English teacher working in the Hawkesbury region of NSW, and as a youngster in the holidays she would visit her uncle in Gundagai who had stockhorses.
“Around that area I saw horses being horribly broken in but my uncle was completely different. He had read the works of Australians Tom Roberts and Maurice Wright and his methods were more humane,” she recalls.
Janice Usherwood and her stallion Tavistock Mishka in the show ring. Image supplied.
While still working in education Janice took on a few horses and rode at shows and dressage days. Later she went full-time into the business – breaking, training (she’s a stickler for the Training Scale), reschooling people’s difficult horses (“no one ever hands you a fabulous one!”), competing and teaching. In her lessons she would discourage “backwards” riding, which she says is still evident in a lot of combinations today.
“You can’t get the elevation and self-carriage you see from the European riders. People here bring out fabulous horses then often, as a result of backwards riding, they begin to rear – the horses don’t understand.”
‘DRESSAGE SHOULD BE A BALLET’
A statement which has always resonated with her was made by a German judge many years ago when he came to Australia for the NSW State Dressage Championships. “’Dressage should be a ballet, not like your football,’ Dr Josef Knipp had said. I’ll always remember it.”
Knipp has also been reported as saying: “True riding is an endless search for synchrony and harmony. You can get it today and lose it tomorrow.”
Janice again met up with Dr Knipp on the main arena at the old Moore Park showgrounds in Sydney where she was performing with her Usherettes. It was one of the troupe’s early public outings.
“I think it was 1988 and we waited by the entrance, with the girls in their Driza-Bones. Some dressage classes had been held on the grounds and the doctor was one of the judges. When all the tests finished the girls dropped their coats, the music began and in we went.”
They were met with total silence. “They hate us,” muttered one of the dancers. “Keep going,” urged Janice.
“Then all hell broke loose. People were clapping, judges in their cars were beeping horns and ringing bells – it was a success! At the end, Knipp grabbed the flowers which were to be given to us and insisted on presenting them personally. ‘This is what dressage means’ he said.”
‘Janice Usherwood and the Usherettes’ performing. Image by Russell Griffiths.
The concept for the troupe had developed while Janice was running an evening Tech School class aimed at non-horsey parents whose children were or wanted to be equestrians. These adults learnt basic horse management; how to rug, tie up, clean hooves, feed, take a temperature etc and would visit Janice’s for hands-on experience with real horses.
Judy, one of the students, ran a dance studio called The Hills Highlights. Her 16-year-old daughter was both horsey and a dancer. Judy and Janice were attracted to the idea of girls and a horse dancing together to music.
THE BOMBPROOF STALLION
“I’d trained a good-looking little palomino stallion, Mishka. He could do all the Grand Prix movements. And he was bombproof,” adds Janice.
“Many young dancers put up their hands. We made a selection, worked out choreography and music for four girls and the stallion, and a routine came together. Initially we were called ‘Mishka and the Hills Highlights’ but after our first outing a news reporter dubbed us ‘Janice Usherwood and the Usherettes’.”
The rest is history.
Tavistock Mishka was a poster stallion for The Arabian Horse Society of Australia. Image supplied.
AN USHERETTE REMEMBERS
“It was my mum who had the dance studio,” reveals Meegan Field, now a dietitian in her late 40s on the NSW Central Coast. She was with the team from the beginning in 1987 until it wound down in 2000.
Although this is Equestrian Life not the Science Monthly, it’s interesting to note that her late father, John Patrick Watts, worked with NASA on Apollo 9 and Apollo 11. He was also in the Antarctic for 18 months as a supervising radio technician at Mawson Station. “Watts Nunatak is named after him,” says Meegan. “A nunatak’s an isolated ridge or peak which protrudes above a glacier.”
Not something you’d run into on this side of the world.
The girls ran into problems when debuting their act at Il Cadore, a large indoor complex on the NSW Central Coast which is no longer active. “We changed in Janice’s truck into tuxedos and our bow ties,” explains Meegan. “Mum had made the outfits using a Mickey Mouse pattern.
“It was pouring with rain and some horsey boys had to carry us over the puddles into the arena – we couldn’t get our dancing shoes wet. The show was bad, we were too far apart and we lost our way.
“We were better the next time when we went to Moore Park.”
Janice then shortened the routine to give it more impact and reduce the girls’ exhaustion. Dancing on sand-covered horse arenas is hard work.
The Usherettes line up began with Meegan Field, Maria Collins (now Maxwell), Kylie Vucko (now Griffith) and Michelle Langton, with Amy Lee and Margaret Ugarte also performing later on. Image supplied.
Apart from Do You Want to Dance? and Mouldy Old Dough, Meegan can’t recall any of the song titles. “The music regularly changed over the years, while our act kept on improving.”
The troupe went all over Australia and wasn’t simply booked as a half-time act at horsey events. “When we attended a charity night at the Sydney Regent Hotel (now the Four Seasons) Mishka had to go up in a lift where there was a vet asking if he needed sedation. “No way he’s fine, thank you”. He took it all in his stride, went on to the carpet, then on to the dance floor and past the band without missing a beat.
“One time we appeared on Ray Martin’s Midday Show. We were in the Channel Nine car park and an attendant warned us that a helicopter was arriving and perhaps we should move the stallion. We didn’t – the chopper landed near to us all and Mishka hardly took any notice.
A ROYAL ENCOUNTER
“During some performances in Melbourne we were introduced to Captain Mark Phillips. Our non-horsey dancers had never heard of him and were horrified when he blew his nose on the silk square in his suit’s breast pocket. I think he was jet-lagged and had forgotten to bring a proper handkerchief. Maybe Princess Anne hadn’t reminded him! Later, one of our girls danced with him. She knew nothing about three-day eventing and had no idea who he was until we explained, but said he was very charming and it was unfair he was nicknamed ‘Foggy’ by members of the Royal Family!”
As time went on Janice would bring out Kisha, the stallion’s palomino daughter. She would acclimatise her to all the different venues and, eventually, Mishka was retired and the mare took over. “Although she wasn’t quite as bombproof,” notes Meegan.
‘Janice Usherwood and the Usherettes’ entertained audiences at many different venues during their time in the spotlight and are fondly remembered by many. Images supplied.
“All this happened years ago but we’re still fondly remembered. I was recently pencilling at a local dressage day and during a tea break it came up that I’d been an Usherette. The club officials couldn’t stop talking about how they’d loved the shows – and gave me extra biscuits!”
Meegan remembers all the girls who had been part of troupe. “With me at the start was Maria Collins (her married name is Maxwell), Kylie Vucko (Griffith) and Michelle Langton. Maria then left and the next two girls who took over and shared performances were Amy Lee and Margaret Ugarte.” EQ
To be continued… in next month’s Equestrian Life magazine, we will continue with Janice Usherwood, who is based in Penrose in the NSW Southern Highlands, and highlight her collaboration with the late Monty Roberts, her Grand Prix dressage pupils, a story from Zimbabwe, baroque horses, overseas trips, meeting celebrities and transitioning to carriage driving.
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