Christine Dorothy Brunton, generally known as Dorothy Brunton or "Dot" was an Australian singer and actress prominent in musical comedy from 1915 to the mid 1930s.
Biography
Her father, John Brunton, was scenic painter in Scottish theatres before working in Australia with J. C. Williamson, George Coppin and Bland Holt. Her mother Cecily Christina was an actress. Dorothy was born shortly after their arrival in Australia. She was educated at Presbyterian Ladies' College in Burwood, Victoria. and at Alford House, Sydney. Her stage advancement was the stuff of Hollywood cliche: travelling around Australia and New Zealand with her father touring with the 1908 production The White Heather in his job as scene painter for Bland Holt, her singing talents being recognised by Grace Miller Ward, wife of Hugh J. Ward and developed towards musical theatre; picking up dancing skills from a famous teacher, Jennie Brenan, acting as understudy and triumphantly filling the role when the star becomes ill, even taking parts she hadn't studied. Her first major engagement So Long Letty was with J. C. Williamson to whom she stayed remarkably loyal. Other roles around this time were in High Jinks, Tonight's the Night, Canary Cottage, The Girl in the Taxi, Nellie Kelly and The Rise of Rosie O'Reilly. In 1916 she appeared in a movie Seven Keys to Baldpate for J. C. Williamson Films. She left for America in 1917, where she played in Follow the Girl then London, where she made a successful appearance in Shanghai at Drury Lane. She returned to Australia in 1920, playing in Yes Uncle! and Baby Bunting. She played for Hugh J. Ward 1924 and 1925, then The Climax for Hugh D. McIntosh in 1927, which "bombed" in London. Her "leading man" was frequently Guy Bates Post.
20 June–14 July 1931 season Dearest Enemy, The Duchess of Danzig for J. C. Williamson at Theatre Royal, Adelaide
18 July 1931– season Dearest Enemy for J.C. Williamson in Perth, followed by The Duchess of Danzig and The Merry Widow
Clara Gibbings – feature film for F. W. Thring
Personal
Dorothy married businessman Ben Dawson in 1931. They moved to London in 1934; she returned to Australia in 1949 after the death of her husband. She had been badly injured in the London bombing and was suffering the effects of Parkinson's disease. She lived alone with a companion and died on 5 June 1977 at a hospice in Sydney and was cremated. Family connection, if any, between Dorothy and fellow actress Barbara Brunton has yet to be found. Dorothy's father was John Brunton, born in Scotland. Barbara's grandfather James Gibb married Mary Brunton on 4 July 1891. Barbara's father James Gibb changed his name to James Brunton Gibb before he married Ethel Isabel Lang on 1 September 1923.
