Beatrice Ferrar

(1880-1958) Beatrice Ferrar made her stage debut and played her first part in a Shakespeare play simultaneously in 1887 when she debuted in Eastbourne at the Theatre Royale as Peaseblossom in A Midsummer Night’s Dream. She was only a child when she joined Sir Frank Benson‘s company in 1888 and played the children’s parts in all his Shakespeare plays until 1890. She first appeared in the London theatre in 1890 and in 1905 played Puck with Walter Hampden as OberonRead more

Murray Carrington

(1885-1941) Carrington made his first stage appearance in 1904, and the next year, he played his first part in Shakespeare in Cymbeline at the Queen’s Theatre, Manchester. He spent eight years with Frank Benson‘s company and played many major roles in Shakespeare. After leaving the military in 1919 he revived his career at Stratford where, eventually, he played in over 140 productions. Among his parts were Caliban, Mark Antony (Julius Caesar), Oberon, Ford (Merry Wives of Windsor), Leontes, and MercutioRead more

Henry Baynton

(1892-1951) Henry Baynton first appeared on stage in 1910 and almost immediately began a long career during which he performed in almost every important part in Shakespeare’s plays. In 1911, he joined the company of Oscar Asche and then in the same year moved to Frank Benson‘s company. He worked with Benson for several years and played, among other parts, Demetrius in A Midsummer Night’s Dream and Hamlet (1915). Then in the summer of 1916 he played Shakespeare at the StratfordRead more

Cora Brown Potter

(1857-1936) The career of Cora Urquhart Brown-Potter, born in New Orleans, is fascinating. She married a New York City socialite, James Brown-Potter in 1877 and immediately became one of the most popular and active members of the New York “set.” She often was invited to parties because she was accomplished at recitation and would entertain after dinner with her declamations. She decided that perhaps her real vocation was on the stage, but that was certainly not a profession for aRead more

Miriam Clements

(1871?-1953?) Miss Clements made her stage debut in 1893 in Dion Boucicault’s The Octaroon at the Theatre Royal in Margate, England. In that same venue she played Juliet in 1893. Her next Shakespeare part was in London at Beerbohm Tree’s Her Majesty’s Theatre where she played Hippolyta in A Midsummer Night’s Dream in 1900. Her last recorded performance in a play by Shakespeare is as Hero in Much Ado About Nothing at His Majesty’s Theatre, London, in 1905.Read more

Dorothea Baird

(1875-1933) Born in England in 1875, Dorothea Forster Baird made her first stage appearance with the Oxford Union Dramatic Society (OUDS) in 1894 as Iris in A Midsummer Night’s Dream. She then married friend and former OUDS player Henry B. Irving, the son of Sir Henry, in 1896, so her career was quite naturally entwined with that of her husband. They seldom appeared separately on stage. In 1894, Baird joined Ben Greet’s company where she played many Shakespeare roles, among themRead more

Harley Granville Barker

  (1877-1946) Harley Granville-Barker was born at London in 1877. He appears to have begun his stage career at an early age, when he became an actor in a provincial company. His first London appearance was in 1892. He subsequently acted with Lewis Waller, Ben Greet, and Mrs. Patrick Campbell, and participated in the productions of the Elizabethan Stage Society. Becoming identified later with the Stage Society, he produced and acted in a number of Bernard Shaw’s early plays. In 1904,Read more