Travelling to Tomorrow The modern women who sparked Australia's romance with America

A celebrity decorator with blue hair. A single mother who advised JFK in the Oval Office. A Christian nudist with a passion for almond milk. A century ago, ten Australian women did something remarkable. Throwing convention to the wind, they headed across the Pacific to make their fortune. In doing so, they reoriented Australia towards the United States years before politicians began to lumber down the same path. For the artist Mary Cecil Allen, this meant spreading the word about American abstract expressionism. For the naturopath Alice Caporn, it meant evangelising fruit juices and salads. For the swimmer Isabel Letham, it was teaching synchronised swimming. Others imported the latest thinking in dentistry, fashion, economics, law, music, medicine and more. They were rebels, they were trailblazers, they were disruptors. Individually, they have extraordinary stories; together, they change the narrative of Australian history.

Yves Rees (they/them) is a writer, historian and podcaster based on unceded Wurundjeri land. Yves is a Senior Lecturer in History at La Trobe University, the co-host of Archive Fever history podcast (with Clare Wright), and author of the memoir All About Yves: Notes from a Transition. They are also co-editor of Nothing to Hide: Voices of Trans and Gender Diverse Australia.

CAST OF CHARACTERS LONDON CALLING LIGHT YEARS AHEAD PART I: ACROSS THE PACIFIC THE LAWYER: Seeking Fame and Fortune in America, Los Angeles, 1910 THE DECORATOR: The Vocation of Glamour, New York City, 1917 THE SWIMMER: Freshwater Mermaid Does Hollywood, Honolulu, 1918 THE DECORATOR: Decorator to the Stars, New York City, 1923 HERSTORY, WHOSE STORY THE SWIMMER: Getting Modern with Natation, San Francisco, 1923 THE WRITER: A New Comet in Fiction, Central Queensland, 1927 THE ARTIST: A City of Dreams, New York City, 1927 THE SWIMMER: We Do Not Teach Ladies, Sydney, 1927 THE PIANIST: An Atmosphere for Excellence, Chicago, 1928 PART II: THE WORLD OF TOMORROW THE LAWYER: Our Only Woman Judge, Los Angeles, 1928 PASSPORTS THE ECONOMIST: The Religion of Progress, Seattle, 1929 THE WRITER: Boom to Bust, Southern California, 1929 THE ECONOMIST: People over Profits, New York City, 1931 THE PIANIST: Why Should We Hate Each Other? Chicago, 1932 THE NATUROPATH: A Philosophy of Nakedness, Chesapeake Bay, 1933 THE DENTIST: From Colonial Girl to Angry Feminist, Melbourne, 1934 THE NURSE: The Yanks are on the Right Track, Chicago, 1933 PART III: LESSONS THE ARTIST: An Unfortunate Addiction to Modernism, Melbourne, 1935 THE NATUROPATH: The Pernicious Virus of American Hooey, Perth, 1937 THE NURSE: Hard to Take after America, London, 1937 THE PIANIST: Making Australia Modern, Melbourne, 1938 THE ECONOMIST: Lessons from Australia, Washington DC, 1939 THE NURSE: Anti-English and Pro-American, New York City, 1940 THE DECORATOR: Selling Australia, New York City, 1942 THE LAWYER: A Better World for Women, Los Angeles, 1945 DEMOCRACY ITSELF THE DENTIST: US Women Have More Freedom, Perth, 1947 THE SWIMMER: The Greatest Aquatic Show, Sydney, 1948 THE WRITER: How to Wear a Wheelchair, Miami, 1950 THE ARTIST: The Tyranny of American Abstraction, Melbourne, 1960 THE ECONOMIST: When Persia met POTUS, Washington DC, 1962 THE SWIMMER: Isabel’ s Ashes, Sydney, 2023 ENDINGS