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 Princess Theatre Haunting - Melbourne, Victoria Posted by:  bucketeer
S 37° 48.638 E 144° 58.354
55H E 321530 N 5813259
Federici died during the finale performing Gounod's opera Faust on opening night at the Princess Theatre.
Waymark Code: WMQ9E4
Location: Victoria, Australia
Date Posted: 01/16/2016
Views: 6
On the evening of 3 March 1888, the baritone Frederick Baker, known under the stage name "Frederick Federici", was performing the role of Mephistopheles in Gounod's opera Faust. This production ended with Mephistopheles sinking dramatically through a trapdoor returning to the fires of hell with his prize, the unfortunate Dr Faustus. As Federici was lowered down through the stage into this basement, he had a heart attack and died almost immediately. He never came back onstage to take his bows, but when the company was told of what had happened at the end of the opera, they said that he had been onstage and taken the bows with them. Since then, various people have claimed to see a ghostly figure in evening dress at the theatre. For many years, a third-row seat in the dress circle was kept vacant in his honour.
Many staff have reported sightings of him since that night. It is said that an ominous light can often be seen hovering over the dress circle as well as the stage. Additionally, strange noises can be heard and sometimes even Federici himself can be seen in the hallways. He’s often been seen in the dress circle, too; the cast and crew say that when they see him, he’s wearing nice, formal clothing, including a cloak and top hat. He’ll sometimes remain in sight for minutes!! The staff believes that if Federici is spotted on the night of a premiere showing, it’s a good omen. Before every show at the Princess Theater, everyone leaves an open place in the dress circle for Federici.
When a documentary was made nearly 80 years later, by Kennedy Miller in the early 1970s, a photograph of the film set revealed an ashen-faced, partly transparent observer. No-one on the set saw the figure on that day; only the photograph revealed 'the ghost'.
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