By 1923 the Jazz Age was in full swing in Tāmaki Makaurau Auckland, with a variety of venues to listen and dance to jazz. From The Dixieland to Trades Hall, The Cafetaria to Click Clack Cabaret, a century later this talk takes you on a digital tour of Auckland’s jazz venues in the 1920s. Dr Ward explores the bands, audiences, and scandalous behaviour that had morality campaigners concerned for the safety of people’s characters.
About the speaker
Dr Aleisha Ward is an award-winning jazz historian and music writer who specialises in the history of jazz in Aotearoa New Zealand. She was a recipient of the 2016/2017 Auckland Libraries Sir George Grey Researcher in Residence, was the 2017 Douglas Lilburn Fellow, and was awarded a 2018 Ministry of Culture and Heritage New Zealand History Research Trust award, all for her project researching Aotearoa’s jazz age. Aleisha is a Professional Teaching Fellow at the University of Auckland and writes for Audioculture.
Presented at the Central City Library on 27 September 2023.