Arthur Cecil
Encyclopedia
Arthur Cecil Blunt, better known as Arthur Cecil (1 June 1843 – 16 April 1896) was an English
actor, comedian, playwright and theatre manager. He is probably best remembered for playing the role of Box in the long-running production of Cox and Box
, by Arthur Sullivan
and F. C. Burnand, at the Royal Gallery of Illustration
.
, Westminster
, London, England. His parents were Joseph Blunt, a solicitor, and Mary Blunt, née James. He studied for the legal profession, but he acted in amateur theatricals, and decided to pursue acting instead.
, Cox and Box
by F. C. Burnand and Arthur Sullivan
. Coincidentally, on Easter Monday 1869, Cecil made his professional début at the Gallery of Illustration in a bill that included Cox and Box, this time as Mr. Box. The first piece on the bill was W. S. Gilbert
's No Cards
, in which he played Mr Churchmouse. Thereafter, Cecil often played Box in productions of Cox and Box.
This was Cecil's first appearance in a German Reed Entertainment
, and he remained steadily with the German Reeds
for five years thereafter. With that company, he appeared in numerous comedies, farces, operettas and burlesques, such as Beggar My Neighbour: A Blind Man's Bouffe adapted by Burnand from Les deux aveugles
by Jacques Offenbach
(1870) and Charity Begins at Home (1872) by Alfred Cellier
and B. C. Stephenson
. After No Cards, he appeared in other Gilbert works at the Gallery, including Ages Ago
(1869), Our Island Home
(1870), A Sensation Novel
(1871) and Happy Arcadia
(1872). He also wrote some works for the German Reeds, including Dora's Dream
(1873), in which he also performed, at St. George's Hall
.
Cecil joined the company at the Globe Theatre
later in 1874, playing in such works as Gilbert's Committed for Trial, as Jonathan Wagstaff and Wig and Gown by James Albery
, as Mr Justice Jones. In September, Cecil was at the Gaiety Theatre, London
, reprising his role in Cox and Box opposite the composer's brother, Fred Sullivan
, as Box. The next year, he was back at the Gaiety in The Merry Wives of Windsor
as Dr. Caius; and at the Opera Comique
, in As You Like It
, as Touchstone, in The School for Scandal
as Sir Peter Teazle, and in She Stoops to Conquer
, as Tony Lumpkin. In 1876, he was back at the Globe. There, he originated the role of Dr. Downward in Miss Gwilt by Wilkie Collins
. He was at the Prince of Wales's Theatre during the following three years. There, he played in many pieces, including Peril by Saville Rowe and B. C. Stephenson, as Sir Woodbine Grafton (together with the Bancrofts
); Duty by Albery in 1879; The Vicarage, as Noel Haygarth; and Caste by T. W. Robertson in 1879 (with the Bancrofts), as Sam Gerridge. The Bancrofts moved to the Haymarket Theatre
in 1880, and Cecil went with them, appearing in Lord Bulwer-Lytton
's Money, as Mr. Graves. He then played in other Robertson comedies at the Comedy Theatre, including Society and Ours.
. From 1883, he was co-manager, with John Clayton, of that theatre. There, he played in a number of farces by A. W. Pinero, including The Rector, as Connor Hennessy; The Magistrate (1885), as Mr. Posket; The Schoolmistress (1886), as Vere Queckett; Dandy Dick (1887), as Blore, the butler; and in the title role of The Cabinet Minister (1890) He also appeared there in G. W. Godfrey's The Millionaire, as Mr. Guyon, and created the role of Miles Henniker in Sydney Grundy
's Mamma (1888). Cecil and Clayton yielded management at the Court to Mrs. John Wood
and Arthur Chudleigh when the theatre closed in 1887, although Cecil continued acting at the theatre after it was rebuilt.
Cecil played the title role in Pickwick by Burnand, with music by Edward Solomon
, at the Comedy Theatre in 1889 and Lord Burnham in The Crusaders, a comedy by Henry Arthur Jones
at the Avenue Theatre in 1891. In 1893, he appeared as Baron Stein in Diplomacy by Clement Scott
and B. C. Stephenson with the Bancrofts at the Garrick Theatre
. In 1894, he was again in Money with the Bancrofts at the Comedy. He continued acting in plays and musical pieces, mostly at the Court Theatre, and sometimes at the Comedy, Globe, Avenue and other houses, often reprising one of his successful roles. In 1895 at the Court, he made one of his last successes in Vanity Fair by G. W. Godfrey.
Throughout his career, Cecil wrote comedy sketches such as "Bright Idea" (1881) with composer Arthur Law
, and songs, some of which became popular or were interpolated into musical theatre pieces, such as Little Jack Sheppard
(1885). He supplemented his income by entertaining at private events and parties.
Cecil died on 16 April 1896 at Brighton
at the age of 52 and was buried at the Old Mortlake
Burial Ground, then in the Municipal Borough of Barnes
, Surrey
and now maintained by the London Borough of Richmond upon Thames
. An official notice relating to his estate
described him as "late of Clarence-chambers Haymarket and the Garrick Club
London, Comedian".
English people
The English are a nation and ethnic group native to England, who speak English. The English identity is of early mediaeval origin, when they were known in Old English as the Anglecynn. England is now a country of the United Kingdom, and the majority of English people in England are British Citizens...
actor, comedian, playwright and theatre manager. He is probably best remembered for playing the role of Box in the long-running production of Cox and Box
Cox and Box
Cox and Box; or, The Long-Lost Brothers, is a one-act comic opera with a libretto by F. C. Burnand and music by Arthur Sullivan, based on the 1847 farce Box and Cox by John Maddison Morton. It was Sullivan's first successful comic opera. The story concerns a landlord who lets a room to two...
, by Arthur Sullivan
Arthur Sullivan
Sir Arthur Seymour Sullivan MVO was an English composer of Irish and Italian ancestry. He is best known for his series of 14 operatic collaborations with the dramatist W. S. Gilbert, including such enduring works as H.M.S. Pinafore, The Pirates of Penzance and The Mikado...
and F. C. Burnand, at the Royal Gallery of Illustration
Royal Gallery of Illustration
The Royal Gallery of Illustration was a performance venue located at 14 Regent Street near Waterloo Place in London, in what was formerly the home of John Nash, designer of Regent Street, Regent's Park, and other urban improvements undertaken at the commission of George IV.From 1855 to about 1876,...
.
Biography
Cecil was born in MayfairMayfair
Mayfair is an area of central London, within the City of Westminster.-History:Mayfair is named after the annual fortnight-long May Fair that took place on the site that is Shepherd Market today...
, Westminster
Westminster
Westminster is an area of central London, within the City of Westminster, England. It lies on the north bank of the River Thames, southwest of the City of London and southwest of Charing Cross...
, London, England. His parents were Joseph Blunt, a solicitor, and Mary Blunt, née James. He studied for the legal profession, but he acted in amateur theatricals, and decided to pursue acting instead.
Early career
Cecil began performing as an amateur at the Richmond Theatre. In 1866, he appeared in the role of Bouncer in an amateur production of the one-act comic operaComic opera
Comic opera denotes a sung dramatic work of a light or comic nature, usually with a happy ending.Forms of comic opera first developed in late 17th-century Italy. By the 1730s, a new operatic genre, opera buffa, emerged as an alternative to opera seria...
, Cox and Box
Cox and Box
Cox and Box; or, The Long-Lost Brothers, is a one-act comic opera with a libretto by F. C. Burnand and music by Arthur Sullivan, based on the 1847 farce Box and Cox by John Maddison Morton. It was Sullivan's first successful comic opera. The story concerns a landlord who lets a room to two...
by F. C. Burnand and Arthur Sullivan
Arthur Sullivan
Sir Arthur Seymour Sullivan MVO was an English composer of Irish and Italian ancestry. He is best known for his series of 14 operatic collaborations with the dramatist W. S. Gilbert, including such enduring works as H.M.S. Pinafore, The Pirates of Penzance and The Mikado...
. Coincidentally, on Easter Monday 1869, Cecil made his professional début at the Gallery of Illustration in a bill that included Cox and Box, this time as Mr. Box. The first piece on the bill was W. S. Gilbert
W. S. Gilbert
Sir William Schwenck Gilbert was an English dramatist, librettist, poet and illustrator best known for his fourteen comic operas produced in collaboration with the composer Sir Arthur Sullivan, of which the most famous include H.M.S...
's No Cards
No Cards
No Cards is a "musical piece in one act" for four characters, written by W. S. Gilbert, with music composed and arranged by Thomas German Reed. It was first produced at the Royal Gallery of Illustration, Lower Regent Street, London, under the management of German Reed, opening on 29 March 1869 and...
, in which he played Mr Churchmouse. Thereafter, Cecil often played Box in productions of Cox and Box.
This was Cecil's first appearance in a German Reed Entertainment
German Reed Entertainment
German Reed Entertainment was founded in 1855 and operated by Thomas German Reed together with his wife, Priscilla Reed née Horton...
, and he remained steadily with the German Reeds
Thomas German Reed
Thomas German Reed was an English composer and theatrical manager best known for creating the German Reed Entertainments, a genre of musical plays that made theatre-going respectable at a time when the stage was considered disreputable...
for five years thereafter. With that company, he appeared in numerous comedies, farces, operettas and burlesques, such as Beggar My Neighbour: A Blind Man's Bouffe adapted by Burnand from Les deux aveugles
Les deux aveugles
Les deux aveugles is a one-act bouffonerie musicale, in the style of an operetta, by Jacques Offenbach to a French libretto by Jules Moinaux...
by Jacques Offenbach
Jacques Offenbach
Jacques Offenbach was a Prussian-born French composer, cellist and impresario. He is remembered for his nearly 100 operettas of the 1850s–1870s and his uncompleted opera The Tales of Hoffmann. He was a powerful influence on later composers of the operetta genre, particularly Johann Strauss, Jr....
(1870) and Charity Begins at Home (1872) by Alfred Cellier
Alfred Cellier
Alfred Cellier was an English composer, orchestrator and conductor.In addition to conducting and music directing the original productions of several of the most famous Gilbert and Sullivan works and writing the overtures to some of them, Cellier conducted at many theatres in London, New York and...
and B. C. Stephenson
B. C. Stephenson
Benjamin Charles Stephenson or B. C. Stephenson was an English dramatist, lyricist and librettist. After beginning a career in the civil service, he started to write for the theatre, using the pen name "Bolton Rowe". He was author or co-author of several long-running shows of the Victorian theatre...
. After No Cards, he appeared in other Gilbert works at the Gallery, including Ages Ago
Ages Ago
Ages Ago is a musical entertainment with a libretto by W. S. Gilbert and music by Frederic Clay that premiered on 22 November 1869 at the Royal Gallery of Illustration. It marked the beginning of a seven year long collaboration between the two. The piece was revived many times, including at St...
(1869), Our Island Home
Our Island Home
Our Island Home is a one-act musical entertainment with a libretto by W. S. Gilbert and music by Thomas German Reed that premiered on June 20, 1870 at the Royal Gallery of Illustration...
(1870), A Sensation Novel
A Sensation Novel
A Sensation Novel is a comic musical play in three acts written by librettist W. S. Gilbert and composer Thomas German Reed. It was first performed on 31 January 1871 at the Royal Gallery of Illustration...
(1871) and Happy Arcadia
Happy Arcadia
Happy Arcadia is a musical entertainment with a libretto by W. S. Gilbert and music originally by Frederic Clay that premiered on 28 October 1872 at the Royal Gallery of Illustration. It was one of four collaborations between Gilbert and Clay between 1869 and 1876. The music is lost...
(1872). He also wrote some works for the German Reeds, including Dora's Dream
Dora's Dream
Dora's Dream is a one-act operetta, with music composed by Alfred Cellier and a libretto by Arthur Cecil.The piece was first performed at the Royal Gallery of Illustration on 3 July 1873, with Fanny Holland and Arthur Cecil starring in the two roles...
(1873), in which he also performed, at St. George's Hall
St. George's Hall
St. George’s Hall may refer to:*St George's Hall, Bradford*St. George's Hall, Liverpool*St. George's Hall, Reading*One of the state rooms at Windsor Castle*St George's Hall and Apollo Room of the Winter Palace, Saint Petersburg...
.
Globe Theatre (Newcastle Street)
The Globe was a Victorian theatre built in 1868 and demolished in 1902. It was the third of five London theatres to bear the name. It was also known at various times as the Royal Globe Theatre or Globe Theatre Royal. Its repertoire consisted mainly of comedies and musical shows...
later in 1874, playing in such works as Gilbert's Committed for Trial, as Jonathan Wagstaff and Wig and Gown by James Albery
James Albery
James Albery was an English dramatist.-Life and career:Albery was born in London. On leaving school Albery entered an architect's office, and started to write plays. His farce A Pretty Piece of Chiselling was given its first production by the Ingoldsby Club in 1864...
, as Mr Justice Jones. In September, Cecil was at the Gaiety Theatre, London
Gaiety Theatre, London
The Gaiety Theatre, London was a West End theatre in London, located on Aldwych at the eastern end of the Strand. The theatre was established as the Strand Musick Hall , in 1864 on the former site of the Lyceum Theatre. It was rebuilt several times, but closed from the beginning of World War II...
, reprising his role in Cox and Box opposite the composer's brother, Fred Sullivan
Fred Sullivan
Frederic Sullivan was an English actor and singer. He is best remembered as the creator of the role of the Learned Judge in Gilbert and Sullivan's Trial by Jury, providing a model for the comic roles in the later Savoy Operas composed by his brother Arthur Sullivan.By 1870, Sullivan had abandoned...
, as Box. The next year, he was back at the Gaiety in The Merry Wives of Windsor
The Merry Wives of Windsor
The Merry Wives of Windsor is a comedy by William Shakespeare, first published in 1602, though believed to have been written prior to 1597. It features the fat knight Sir John Falstaff, and is Shakespeare's only play to deal exclusively with contemporary Elizabethan era English middle class life...
as Dr. Caius; and at the Opera Comique
Opera Comique
The Opera Comique was a 19th-century theatre constructed in Westminster, London, between Wych Street and Holywell Street with entrances on the East Strand. It opened in 1870 and was demolished in 1902, to make way for the construction of the Aldwych and Kingsway...
, in As You Like It
As You Like It
As You Like It is a pastoral comedy by William Shakespeare believed to have been written in 1599 or early 1600 and first published in the folio of 1623. The play's first performance is uncertain, though a performance at Wilton House in 1603 has been suggested as a possibility...
, as Touchstone, in The School for Scandal
The School for Scandal
The School for Scandal is a play written by Richard Brinsley Sheridan. It was first performed in London at Drury Lane Theatre on May 8, 1777.The prologue, written by David Garrick, commends the play, its subject, and its author to the audience...
as Sir Peter Teazle, and in She Stoops to Conquer
She Stoops to Conquer
She Stoops to Conquer is a comedy by the Irish author Oliver Goldsmith, son of an Anglo-Irish vicar, first performed in London in 1773. The play is a great favourite for study by English literature and theatre classes in Britain and the United States. It is one of the few plays from the 18th...
, as Tony Lumpkin. In 1876, he was back at the Globe. There, he originated the role of Dr. Downward in Miss Gwilt by Wilkie Collins
Wilkie Collins
William Wilkie Collins was an English novelist, playwright, and author of short stories. He was very popular during the Victorian era and wrote 30 novels, more than 60 short stories, 14 plays, and over 100 non-fiction pieces...
. He was at the Prince of Wales's Theatre during the following three years. There, he played in many pieces, including Peril by Saville Rowe and B. C. Stephenson, as Sir Woodbine Grafton (together with the Bancrofts
Squire Bancroft
Sir Squire Bancroft , born Squire White Butterfield, was an English actor-manager. He and his wife Effie Bancroft are considered to have instigated a new form of drama known as 'drawing-room comedy' or 'cup and saucer drama', owing to the realism of their stage sets.-Early life and career:Bancroft...
); Duty by Albery in 1879; The Vicarage, as Noel Haygarth; and Caste by T. W. Robertson in 1879 (with the Bancrofts), as Sam Gerridge. The Bancrofts moved to the Haymarket Theatre
Haymarket Theatre
The Theatre Royal Haymarket is a West End theatre in the Haymarket in the City of Westminster which dates back to 1720, making it the third-oldest London playhouse still in use...
in 1880, and Cecil went with them, appearing in Lord Bulwer-Lytton
Edward Bulwer-Lytton, 1st Baron Lytton
Edward George Earle Lytton Bulwer-Lytton, 1st Baron Lytton PC , was an English politician, poet, playwright, and novelist. He was immensely popular with the reading public and wrote a stream of bestselling dime-novels which earned him a considerable fortune...
's Money, as Mr. Graves. He then played in other Robertson comedies at the Comedy Theatre, including Society and Ours.
Later years
Beginning in 1881, Cecil joined the company at the Royal Court TheatreRoyal Court Theatre
The Royal Court Theatre is a non-commercial theatre on Sloane Square, in the Royal Borough of Kensington and Chelsea. It is noted for its contributions to modern theatre...
. From 1883, he was co-manager, with John Clayton, of that theatre. There, he played in a number of farces by A. W. Pinero, including The Rector, as Connor Hennessy; The Magistrate (1885), as Mr. Posket; The Schoolmistress (1886), as Vere Queckett; Dandy Dick (1887), as Blore, the butler; and in the title role of The Cabinet Minister (1890) He also appeared there in G. W. Godfrey's The Millionaire, as Mr. Guyon, and created the role of Miles Henniker in Sydney Grundy
Sydney Grundy
Sydney Grundy was an English dramatist. Most of his works were adaptations of European plays, and many became successful enough to tour throughout the English-speaking world...
's Mamma (1888). Cecil and Clayton yielded management at the Court to Mrs. John Wood
Mrs. John Wood
Mrs. John Wood , born Matilda Charlotte Vining, was an English actress and theatre manager.-Biography:...
and Arthur Chudleigh when the theatre closed in 1887, although Cecil continued acting at the theatre after it was rebuilt.
Cecil played the title role in Pickwick by Burnand, with music by Edward Solomon
Edward Solomon
Edward Solomon was a prolific English composer, as well as a conductor, orchestrator and pianist. Though he died before his fortieth birthday, he wrote dozens of works produced for the stage, including several for the D'Oyly Carte Opera Company, such as The Nautch Girl, among others.-Early...
, at the Comedy Theatre in 1889 and Lord Burnham in The Crusaders, a comedy by Henry Arthur Jones
Henry Arthur Jones
Henry Arthur Jones was an English dramatist.-Biography:Jones was born at Granborough, Buckinghamshire to Silvanus Jones, a farmer. He began to earn his living early, his spare time being given to literary pursuits...
at the Avenue Theatre in 1891. In 1893, he appeared as Baron Stein in Diplomacy by Clement Scott
Clement Scott
Clement Scott was an influential English theatre critic for the Daily Telegraph, and a playwright and travel writer, in the final decades of the 19th century...
and B. C. Stephenson with the Bancrofts at the Garrick Theatre
Garrick Theatre
The Garrick Theatre is a West End theatre, located on Charing Cross Road, in the City of Westminster. It opened on 24 April 1889 with The Profligate, a play by Arthur Wing Pinero. In its early years, it appears to have specialised in the performance of melodrama, and today the theatre is a...
. In 1894, he was again in Money with the Bancrofts at the Comedy. He continued acting in plays and musical pieces, mostly at the Court Theatre, and sometimes at the Comedy, Globe, Avenue and other houses, often reprising one of his successful roles. In 1895 at the Court, he made one of his last successes in Vanity Fair by G. W. Godfrey.
Throughout his career, Cecil wrote comedy sketches such as "Bright Idea" (1881) with composer Arthur Law
Arthur Law
William Arthur Law , better known as Arthur Law, was an English playwright, actor and scenic designer.-Life and career:...
, and songs, some of which became popular or were interpolated into musical theatre pieces, such as Little Jack Sheppard
Little Jack Sheppard
Little Jack Sheppard is a burlesque melodrama written by Henry Pottinger Stephens and William Yardley, with music by Meyer Lutz, with songs contributed by Florian Pascal, Corney Grain, Arthur Cecil, Michael Watson, Henry J. Leslie, Alfred Cellier and Hamilton Clarke...
(1885). He supplemented his income by entertaining at private events and parties.
Cecil died on 16 April 1896 at Brighton
Brighton
Brighton is the major part of the city of Brighton and Hove in East Sussex, England on the south coast of Great Britain...
at the age of 52 and was buried at the Old Mortlake
Mortlake
Mortlake is a district of London, England and part of the London Borough of Richmond upon Thames. It is on the south bank of the River Thames between Kew and Barnes with East Sheen inland to the south. Mortlake was part of Surrey until 1965.-History:...
Burial Ground, then in the Municipal Borough of Barnes
Municipal Borough of Barnes
Barnes was a local government district in north west Surrey from 1894 to 1965.It was formed as an urban district in 1894 and became a municipal borough in 1932....
, Surrey
Surrey
Surrey is a county in the South East of England and is one of the Home Counties. The county borders Greater London, Kent, East Sussex, West Sussex, Hampshire and Berkshire. The historic county town is Guildford. Surrey County Council sits at Kingston upon Thames, although this has been part of...
and now maintained by the London Borough of Richmond upon Thames
London Borough of Richmond upon Thames
The London Borough of Richmond upon Thames is a London borough in South West London, UK, which forms part of Outer London. It is unique because it is the only London borough situated both north and south of the River Thames.-Settlement:...
. An official notice relating to his estate
Estate (law)
An estate is the net worth of a person at any point in time. It is the sum of a person's assets - legal rights, interests and entitlements to property of any kind - less all liabilities at that time. The issue is of special legal significance on a question of bankruptcy and death of the person...
described him as "late of Clarence-chambers Haymarket and the Garrick Club
Garrick Club
The Garrick Club is a gentlemen's club in London.-History:The Garrick Club was founded at a meeting in the Committee Room at Theatre Royal, Drury Lane on Wednesday 17 August 1831...
London, Comedian".