Julia Neilson

(1868-1957) Born in London, Julia Neilson spent her early years studying in Germany before enrolling in the Royal Academy of Music and earning prize after prize for her singing abilities. On March 21, 1888, she made her first stage appearance at the Lyceum Theatre in W.S. Gilbert’s Pygmalion and Galatea in the role of Cynisca. A few months later, she moved up to the lead role of Galatea opposite Lewis Waller. Soon, she began performing and touring with Beerbohm Tree,Read more

Viola Tree

(1884-1938) Viola, somewhat of a polymath, was born in London in 1884. She was eldest daughter of Maude and Sir Herbert Beerbohm Tree. She got her start early by performing at her father’s company at Her Majesty’s Theatre, and in 1904, she debuted, successfully, as Viola in Twelfth Night. Over the next several years, she appeared in Much Ado About Nothing as Hero, The Tempest as Ariel, Richard II as the Queen, The Merry Wives of Windsor as Anne Page,Read more

Allan Wilkie

(1878-1970) Wilkie made his stage debut in 1899 and almost immediately began touring with three of the great Shakespeare companies, those of Rawson Buckley, Ben Greet and Frank Benson. After his experience with these companies and the numerous parts he played in Shakespeare he formed his own company and toured England, India, and Australia. In 1920 after his company’s successful runs in Melbourne and Sydney, he took his troupe over much of Asia. In all, he staged twenty-seven of Shakespeare’sRead more

William Haviland

(1860-1917) William Haviland began his long association with Shakespeare in 1882 when he joined the company of Sir Henry Irving; until he left Irving in 1895, he performed a number of parts, major and minor, in the thirteen years he played and toured with Irving. After a tour in South Africa, he joined Johnston Forbes-Robertson and then Martin Harvey for his sixth tour of America in 1902. In 1903 he joined Beerbohm Tree’s company and remained with him until 1905;Read more