She was a contralto and performed with the Metropolitan Liedertafel, the Royal Melbourne Philharmonic Society, and the German Opera Company.

[1] Joining the Collins Street Independent Church, John became interested in social questions and adopted feminist and anti-conscriptionist views that were radical for the time.

She was a friend of Vida Goldstein and assisted in her attempt to enter Parliament in 1913, and was a member of the anti-conscription Australian Freedom League.

[1] When Australian Prime Minister Billy Hughes proposed compulsory military service in order to provide reinforcements for the depleted Australian Imperial Force, John and other anti-war feminists reacted by forming the Women's Peace Army (WPA), which worked to oppose both conscription and militarism.

[3] Following the war, John became interested in the Dalcroze Eurhythmic style of dance, and in 1921 moved permanently to London to study it further.