Evelyn Millard
Encyclopedia
Evelyn Mary Millard was an English Shakespearean
actress, actor-manager
and "stage beauty" of the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries perhaps best known for creating the role of Cecily Cardew in the 1895 premiere of Oscar Wilde
's The Importance of Being Earnest
.
in London in 1869, one of three daughters of John Millard, a teacher of elocution
at the Royal Academy of Music
and the Royal College of Music
, and his wife, Emily. Evelyn Millard studied at the Female School of Art in Bloomsbury
. She made her first stage appearance in 1891 in a "walk-on" role in Henry Arthur Jones
' play The Dancing Girl at the Haymarket Theatre
in London. She trained as an actress under Sarah Thorne
at her School of Acting based at the Theatre Royal in Margate
, where she learnt "voice production, gesture and mime, dialects and accents, make-up, the portrayal of characters, the value of pace and the value of pauses". For Thorne she played Julia in The Hunchback, Juliet
in Romeo and Juliet
and Hero in Much Ado About Nothing
. She then joined Thomas Thorne
's company, and toured in the plays Joseph's Sweetheart, Miss Tomboy, Sophia and Money. Millard then spent almost two years at the Adelphi Theatre
in London.
In 1894 Millard toured with George Alexander
, for whom she played Rosamund in Sowing the Wind, Dulcie in The Masqueraders and Paula in The Second Mrs Tanqueray
; she also played the latter role at the St James's Theatre
. At this theatre she created the role of Cecily Cardew in the 1895 premiere of Oscar Wilde
's The Importance of Being Earnest
. In September 1895 Millard appeared before Queen Victoria
in a Royal Command Performance
of Liberty Hall at Balmoral
.
From January 1896 she played Princess Flavia in the London premiere of the play The Prisoner of Zenda
. In 1897 Millard joined the theatrical company of Herbert Beerbohm Tree
and played Portia
in Julius Caesar
in 1898 at Her Majesty's Theatre
in London.
For the American theatrical manager Charles Frohman
, she played Lady Ursula in The Adventure of Lady Ursula at the Duke of York's Theatre
in 1898, the title role in Jerome K. Jerome
's Miss Hobbs, both of which ran for over 200 performances, and Cho-Cho-San in the London premiere of David Belasco
's play Madame Butterfly, which opened on 28 April 1900 at the Duke of York's Theatre
and which ran for sixty-eight performances. The cast included Allan Aynesworth, Claude Gillingwater
and J. C. Buckstone
. This production was seen by the composer Giacomo Puccini
, who is said to have based his opera Madama Butterfly
on it.
in London. Their daughter Ursula (born 20 September 1901) was named after the character Millard was playing in The Adventure of Lady Ursula when she met Coulter in 1898. In March 1902 Millard returned to the stage at the St James's Theatre
to play Francesca in Paolo and Francesca. She appeared in two further Royal Command Performance
s at Windsor Castle
before Edward VII
; in November 1904 she appeared as Lady Mary Carlyle in Monsieur Beaucaire
opposite Lewis Waller
, and in November 1906 as Lady Marian
in Robin Hood
.
Millard then played in a number of Shakespearean roles, including Jessica in The Merchant of Venice
in 1903, Juliet in Romeo and Juliet in 1905, and Desdemona
in Waller's 1906 production of Othello
. Also in 1906 she appeared with Lewis Waller
in The Harlequin King at the Imperial Theatre. Millard formed her own theatrical company as actor-manager
in 1908, playing Ophelia
in Twelfth Night in 1910 and Olivia in the same play in 1912 at the Savoy Theatre
in London, directed by Harley Granville Barker. She also played Edith Dombey in Dombey and Son
and Agnes in David Copperfield
, among others. Millard reprised the role of Cho-Cho-San in Madame Butterfly at the Palace Theatre of Varieties in London in 1911.
Millard's last major role was as Agnes Wickfield in David Copperfield
at His Majesty's Theatre
in December 1914. Her last known role was a brief appearance as Calpurnia
in Julius Caesar
during the Shakespeare Tercentenary Celebration in 1916.
Evelyn Millard died on 9 March 1941 in London aged 70.
http://www.vam.ac.uk/vastatic/microsites/1158_lafayette/popup.php?img_id=304Millard photographed in 1899 as Lady Ursula Barrington in The Adventure of Lady Ursula - Victoria and Albert Museum
Archive]
William Shakespeare
William Shakespeare was an English poet and playwright, widely regarded as the greatest writer in the English language and the world's pre-eminent dramatist. He is often called England's national poet and the "Bard of Avon"...
actress, actor-manager
Actor-manager
An actor-manager is a leading actor who sets up their own permanent theatrical company and manages the company's business and financial arrangements, sometimes taking over the management of a theatre, to perform plays of their own choice and in which they will usually star...
and "stage beauty" of the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries perhaps best known for creating the role of Cecily Cardew in the 1895 premiere of Oscar Wilde
Oscar Wilde
Oscar Fingal O'Flahertie Wills Wilde was an Irish writer and poet. After writing in different forms throughout the 1880s, he became one of London's most popular playwrights in the early 1890s...
's The Importance of Being Earnest
The Importance of Being Earnest
The Importance of Being Earnest, A Trivial Comedy for Serious People is a play by Oscar Wilde. First performed on 14 February 1895 at St. James's Theatre in London, it is a farcical comedy in which the protagonists maintain fictitious personae in order to escape burdensome social obligations...
.
Early life and career
Millard was born in KensingtonKensington
Kensington is a district of west and central London, England within the Royal Borough of Kensington and Chelsea. An affluent and densely-populated area, its commercial heart is Kensington High Street, and it contains the well-known museum district of South Kensington.To the north, Kensington is...
in London in 1869, one of three daughters of John Millard, a teacher of elocution
Elocution
Elocution is the study of formal speaking in pronunciation, grammar, style, and tone.-History:In Western classical rhetoric, elocution was one of the five core disciplines of pronunciation, which was the art of delivering speeches. Orators were trained not only on proper diction, but on the proper...
at the Royal Academy of Music
Royal Academy of Music
The Royal Academy of Music in London, England, is a conservatoire, Britain's oldest degree-granting music school and a constituent college of the University of London since 1999. The Academy was founded by Lord Burghersh in 1822 with the help and ideas of the French harpist and composer Nicolas...
and the Royal College of Music
Royal College of Music
The Royal College of Music is a conservatoire founded by Royal Charter in 1882, located in South Kensington, London, England.-Background:The first director was Sir George Grove and he was followed by Sir Hubert Parry...
, and his wife, Emily. Evelyn Millard studied at the Female School of Art in Bloomsbury
Bloomsbury
-Places:* Bloomsbury is an area in central London.* Bloomsbury , related local government unit* Bloomsbury, New Jersey, New Jersey, USA* Bloomsbury , listed on the NRHP in Maryland...
. She made her first stage appearance in 1891 in a "walk-on" role in 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...
' play The Dancing Girl at 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 London. She trained as an actress under Sarah Thorne
Sarah Thorne
Sarah Thorne was a British actress and actor-manager of the nineteenth century who managed the Theatre Royal at Margate for many years and who ran a School for Acting there widely regarded as Britain's first formal drama school...
at her School of Acting based at the Theatre Royal in Margate
Margate
-Demography:As of the 2001 UK census, Margate had a population of 40,386.The ethnicity of the town was 97.1% white, 1.0% mixed race, 0.5% black, 0.8% Asian, 0.6% Chinese or other ethnicity....
, where she learnt "voice production, gesture and mime, dialects and accents, make-up, the portrayal of characters, the value of pace and the value of pauses". For Thorne she played Julia in The Hunchback, Juliet
Juliet Capulet
Juliet is one of the title characters in William Shakespeare's tragedy Romeo and Juliet, the other being Romeo. She is the daughter of old Capulet, head of the house of Capulet. The story has a long history that precedes Shakespeare himself....
in Romeo and Juliet
Romeo and Juliet
Romeo and Juliet is a tragedy written early in the career of playwright William Shakespeare about two young star-crossed lovers whose deaths ultimately unite their feuding families. It was among Shakespeare's most popular archetypal stories of young, teenage lovers.Romeo and Juliet belongs to a...
and Hero in Much Ado About Nothing
Much Ado About Nothing
Much Ado About Nothing is a comedy written by William Shakespeare about two pairs of lovers, Benedick and Beatrice, and Claudio and Hero....
. She then joined Thomas Thorne
Thomas Thorne
Thomas Thorne was an English actor and theatre manager. Thomas Thorne was one the founding managers of London's Vaudeville Theatre, along with David James and Henry James Montague, and performed leading roles in many of the productions there. His father was Richard Samuel Thorne, who managed the...
's company, and toured in the plays Joseph's Sweetheart, Miss Tomboy, Sophia and Money. Millard then spent almost two years at the Adelphi Theatre
Adelphi Theatre
The Adelphi Theatre is a 1500-seat West End theatre, located on the Strand in the City of Westminster. The present building is the fourth on the site. The theatre has specialised in comedy and musical theatre, and today it is a receiving house for a variety of productions, including many musicals...
in London.
In 1894 Millard toured with George Alexander
George Alexander (actor)
Sir George Alexander , born George Alexander Gibb Samson, was an English actor and theatre manager.Alexander was born in Reading, Berkshire. He began acting in amateur theatricals in 1875. Four years later he embarked on a professional acting career, making his London debut in 1881...
, for whom she played Rosamund in Sowing the Wind, Dulcie in The Masqueraders and Paula in The Second Mrs Tanqueray
The Second Mrs Tanqueray
The Second Mrs. Tanqueray is a problem play by Sir Arthur Wing Pinero. It adopts the "Woman with a past" plot, popular in nineteenth century melodrama.-Plot:...
; she also played the latter role at the St James's Theatre
St James's Theatre
The St James's Theatre was a 1,200-seat theatre located in King Street, at Duke Street, St James's, London. The elaborate theatre was designed with a neo-classical exterior and a Louis XIV style interior by Samuel Beazley and built by the partnership of Peto & Grissell for the tenor and theatre...
. At this theatre she created the role of Cecily Cardew in the 1895 premiere of Oscar Wilde
Oscar Wilde
Oscar Fingal O'Flahertie Wills Wilde was an Irish writer and poet. After writing in different forms throughout the 1880s, he became one of London's most popular playwrights in the early 1890s...
's The Importance of Being Earnest
The Importance of Being Earnest
The Importance of Being Earnest, A Trivial Comedy for Serious People is a play by Oscar Wilde. First performed on 14 February 1895 at St. James's Theatre in London, it is a farcical comedy in which the protagonists maintain fictitious personae in order to escape burdensome social obligations...
. In September 1895 Millard appeared before Queen Victoria
Victoria of the United Kingdom
Victoria was the monarch of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland from 20 June 1837 until her death. From 1 May 1876, she used the additional title of Empress of India....
in a Royal Command Performance
Royal Command Performance
For the annual Royal Variety Performance performed in Britain for the benefit of the Entertainment Artistes' Benevolent Fund, see Royal Variety Performance...
of Liberty Hall at Balmoral
Balmoral Castle
Balmoral Castle is a large estate house in Royal Deeside, Aberdeenshire, Scotland. It is located near the village of Crathie, west of Ballater and east of Braemar. Balmoral has been one of the residences of the British Royal Family since 1852, when it was purchased by Queen Victoria and her...
.
From January 1896 she played Princess Flavia in the London premiere of the play The Prisoner of Zenda
The Prisoner of Zenda
The Prisoner of Zenda is an adventure novel by Anthony Hope, published in 1894. The king of the fictional country of Ruritania is drugged on the eve of his coronation and thus unable to attend his own coronation. Political forces are such that in order for the king to retain his crown his...
. In 1897 Millard joined the theatrical company of Herbert Beerbohm Tree
Herbert Beerbohm Tree
Sir Herbert Beerbohm Tree was an English actor and theatre manager.Tree began performing in the 1870s. By 1887, he was managing the Haymarket Theatre, winning praise for adventurous programming and lavish productions, and starring in many of its productions. In 1899, he helped fund the...
and played Portia
Porcia Catonis
Porcia Catonis, also known simply as Porcia was a Roman woman who lived in the 1st century BC. She was the daughter of Marcus Porcius Cato Uticencis and his first wife Atilia...
in Julius Caesar
Julius Caesar (play)
The Tragedy of Julius Caesar, also known simply as Julius Caesar, is a tragedy by William Shakespeare, believed to have been written in 1599. It portrays the 44 BC conspiracy against...
in 1898 at Her Majesty's Theatre
Her Majesty's Theatre
Her Majesty's Theatre is a West End theatre, in Haymarket, City of Westminster, London. The present building was designed by Charles J. Phipps and was constructed in 1897 for actor-manager Herbert Beerbohm Tree, who established the Royal Academy of Dramatic Art at the theatre...
in London.
For the American theatrical manager Charles Frohman
Charles Frohman
Charles Frohman was an American theatrical producer. Frohman was producing plays by 1889 and acquired his first Broadway theatre by 1892. He discovered and promoted many stars of the American theatre....
, she played Lady Ursula in The Adventure of Lady Ursula at the Duke of York's Theatre
Duke of York's Theatre
The Duke of York's Theatre is a West End Theatre in St Martin's Lane, in the City of Westminster. It was built for Frank Wyatt and his wife, Violet Melnotte, who retained ownership of the theatre, until her death in 1935. It opened on 10 September 1892 as the Trafalgar Square Theatre, with Wedding...
in 1898, the title role in Jerome K. Jerome
Jerome K. Jerome
Jerome Klapka Jerome was an English writer and humorist, best known for the humorous travelogue Three Men in a Boat.Jerome was born in Caldmore, Walsall, England, and was brought up in poverty in London...
's Miss Hobbs, both of which ran for over 200 performances, and Cho-Cho-San in the London premiere of David Belasco
David Belasco
David Belasco was an American theatrical producer, impresario, director and playwright.-Biography:Born in San Francisco, California, where his Sephardic Jewish parents had moved from London, England, during the Gold Rush, he began working in a San Francisco theatre doing a variety of routine jobs,...
's play Madame Butterfly, which opened on 28 April 1900 at the Duke of York's Theatre
Duke of York's Theatre
The Duke of York's Theatre is a West End Theatre in St Martin's Lane, in the City of Westminster. It was built for Frank Wyatt and his wife, Violet Melnotte, who retained ownership of the theatre, until her death in 1935. It opened on 10 September 1892 as the Trafalgar Square Theatre, with Wedding...
and which ran for sixty-eight performances. The cast included Allan Aynesworth, Claude Gillingwater
Claude Gillingwater
Claude Benton Gillingwater was an American stage and screen actor. He first appeared on the stage then in 92 films between 1918 and 1939....
and J. C. Buckstone
J. C. Buckstone
John Copeland Buckstone was an English stage and film actor of the late Victorian and Edwardian eras, who was most famous for his 1901 stage play Scrooge, which was the basis for the first film version of A Christmas Carol in the same year...
. This production was seen by the composer Giacomo Puccini
Giacomo Puccini
Giacomo Antonio Domenico Michele Secondo Maria Puccini was an Italian composer whose operas, including La bohème, Tosca, Madama Butterfly, and Turandot, are among the most frequently performed in the standard repertoire...
, who is said to have based his opera Madama Butterfly
Madama Butterfly
Madama Butterfly is an opera in three acts by Giacomo Puccini, with an Italian libretto by Luigi Illica and Giuseppe Giacosa. Puccini based his opera in part on the short story "Madame Butterfly" by John Luther Long, which was dramatized by David Belasco...
on it.
Later years
On 19 July 1900 Millard married Robert Porter Coulter (died 1915) at St. George's church in Hanover SquareHanover Square
Hanover Square may refer to:* Hanover Square, London, England* Hanover Square, Manhattan, New York City, USA** Hanover Square , elevated station* Hanover Square, Syracuse, USA-See also:* Hanover Square Rooms, London...
in London. Their daughter Ursula (born 20 September 1901) was named after the character Millard was playing in The Adventure of Lady Ursula when she met Coulter in 1898. In March 1902 Millard returned to the stage at the St James's Theatre
St James's Theatre
The St James's Theatre was a 1,200-seat theatre located in King Street, at Duke Street, St James's, London. The elaborate theatre was designed with a neo-classical exterior and a Louis XIV style interior by Samuel Beazley and built by the partnership of Peto & Grissell for the tenor and theatre...
to play Francesca in Paolo and Francesca. She appeared in two further Royal Command Performance
Royal Command Performance
For the annual Royal Variety Performance performed in Britain for the benefit of the Entertainment Artistes' Benevolent Fund, see Royal Variety Performance...
s at Windsor Castle
Windsor Castle
Windsor Castle is a medieval castle and royal residence in Windsor in the English county of Berkshire, notable for its long association with the British royal family and its architecture. The original castle was built after the Norman invasion by William the Conqueror. Since the time of Henry I it...
before Edward VII
Edward VII of the United Kingdom
Edward VII was King of the United Kingdom and the British Dominions and Emperor of India from 22 January 1901 until his death in 1910...
; in November 1904 she appeared as Lady Mary Carlyle in Monsieur Beaucaire
Monsieur Beaucaire (novel)
Monsieur Beaucaire is a short novel by Pulitzer Prize-winning author Booth Tarkington that was first published in 1900.-Plot:The setting is Bath during the eighteenth century. Before the action of the novel begins, Beau Nash, an historical figure who served as Master of Ceremonies of Bath, has...
opposite Lewis Waller
Lewis Waller
William Lewis Waller was an English actor and theatre manager. His father was a civil engineer.Born in Spain, he first appeared on the London stage in 1883, at Tooles, and for some years added to his reputation as a capable actor...
, and in November 1906 as Lady Marian
Maid Marian
Maid Marian is the wife of the legendary English outlaw Robin Hood. Stemming from another, older tradition, she became associated with Robin Hood only in the 16th century.-History:The earliest medieval Robin Hood stories gave him no female companion...
in Robin Hood
Robin Hood
Robin Hood was a heroic outlaw in English folklore. A highly skilled archer and swordsman, he is known for "robbing from the rich and giving to the poor", assisted by a group of fellow outlaws known as his "Merry Men". Traditionally, Robin Hood and his men are depicted wearing Lincoln green clothes....
.
Millard then played in a number of Shakespearean roles, including Jessica in The Merchant of Venice
The Merchant of Venice
The Merchant of Venice is a tragic comedy by William Shakespeare, believed to have been written between 1596 and 1598. Though classified as a comedy in the First Folio and sharing certain aspects with Shakespeare's other romantic comedies, the play is perhaps most remembered for its dramatic...
in 1903, Juliet in Romeo and Juliet in 1905, and Desdemona
Desdemona
Desdemona is a character in William Shakespeare's play Othello.Desdemona may also refer to:People* Desdemona , a soprano role in the 1816 opera Otello by Gioachino Rossini...
in Waller's 1906 production of Othello
Othello
The Tragedy of Othello, the Moor of Venice is a tragedy by William Shakespeare, believed to have been written in approximately 1603, and based on the Italian short story "Un Capitano Moro" by Cinthio, a disciple of Boccaccio, first published in 1565...
. Also in 1906 she appeared with Lewis Waller
Lewis Waller
William Lewis Waller was an English actor and theatre manager. His father was a civil engineer.Born in Spain, he first appeared on the London stage in 1883, at Tooles, and for some years added to his reputation as a capable actor...
in The Harlequin King at the Imperial Theatre. Millard formed her own theatrical company as actor-manager
Actor-manager
An actor-manager is a leading actor who sets up their own permanent theatrical company and manages the company's business and financial arrangements, sometimes taking over the management of a theatre, to perform plays of their own choice and in which they will usually star...
in 1908, playing Ophelia
Ophelia
Ophelia is a fictional character in the play Hamlet by William Shakespeare. She is a young noblewoman of Denmark, the daughter of Polonius, sister of Laertes, and potential wife of Prince Hamlet.-Plot:...
in Twelfth Night in 1910 and Olivia in the same play in 1912 at the Savoy Theatre
Savoy Theatre
The Savoy Theatre is a West End theatre located in the Strand in the City of Westminster, London, England. The theatre opened on 10 October 1881 and was built by Richard D'Oyly Carte on the site of the old Savoy Palace as a showcase for the popular series of comic operas of Gilbert and Sullivan,...
in London, directed by Harley Granville Barker. She also played Edith Dombey in Dombey and Son
Dombey and Son
Dombey and Son is a novel by the Victorian author Charles Dickens. It was first published in monthly parts between October 1846 and April 1848 with the full title Dealings with the Firm of Dombey and Son: Wholesale, Retail and for Exportation...
and Agnes in David Copperfield
David Copperfield (novel)
The Personal History, Adventures, Experience and Observation of David Copperfield the Younger of Blunderstone Rookery , commonly referred to as David Copperfield, is the eighth novel by Charles Dickens, first published as a novel in 1850. Like most of his works, it originally appeared in serial...
, among others. Millard reprised the role of Cho-Cho-San in Madame Butterfly at the Palace Theatre of Varieties in London in 1911.
Millard's last major role was as Agnes Wickfield in David Copperfield
David Copperfield (novel)
The Personal History, Adventures, Experience and Observation of David Copperfield the Younger of Blunderstone Rookery , commonly referred to as David Copperfield, is the eighth novel by Charles Dickens, first published as a novel in 1850. Like most of his works, it originally appeared in serial...
at His Majesty's Theatre
His Majesty's Theatre
His Majesty's Theatre in Aberdeen is the largest theatre in north-east Scotland, seating more than 1400. The theatre is sited on Rosemount Viaduct, opposite the city's Union Terrace Gardens. It was designed by Frank Matcham and opened in 1906...
in December 1914. Her last known role was a brief appearance as Calpurnia
Calpurnia Pisonis
Calpurnia Pisonis , daughter of Lucius Calpurnius Piso Caesoninus, sister of Lucius Calpurnius Piso, "the Pontifex", was a Roman woman and the third and last wife of Julius Caesar. Calpurnia was the great-granddaughter of a lieutenant of Lucius Cassius Longinus, whose name was Lucius Piso...
in Julius Caesar
Julius Caesar (play)
The Tragedy of Julius Caesar, also known simply as Julius Caesar, is a tragedy by William Shakespeare, believed to have been written in 1599. It portrays the 44 BC conspiracy against...
during the Shakespeare Tercentenary Celebration in 1916.
Evelyn Millard died on 9 March 1941 in London aged 70.
External links
- http://www.npg.org.uk/collections/search/portraitLarge/mw75948/Evelyn-Millard-with-her-daughter-Ursula-Millard?LinkID=mp57457&role=sit&rNo=2Millard photographed with her daughter in 1916 by BassanoBassano-Places:*Communes in Italy:**Bassano Bresciano, in the Province of Brescia**Bassano del Grappa, in the Province of Vicenza**Bassano in Teverina, in the Province of Viterbo**Bassano Romano, in the Province of Viterbo**San Bassano, in the Province of Cremona...
- National Portrait Gallery, London] - http://www.npg.org.uk/collections/search/portraitLarge/mw53274/Evelyn-MillardMillard photographed by BassanoBassano-Places:*Communes in Italy:**Bassano Bresciano, in the Province of Brescia**Bassano del Grappa, in the Province of Vicenza**Bassano in Teverina, in the Province of Viterbo**Bassano Romano, in the Province of Viterbo**San Bassano, in the Province of Cremona...
in 1912 - National Portrait Gallery, London]
http://www.vam.ac.uk/vastatic/microsites/1158_lafayette/popup.php?img_id=304Millard photographed in 1899 as Lady Ursula Barrington in The Adventure of Lady Ursula - Victoria and Albert Museum
Victoria and Albert Museum
The Victoria and Albert Museum , set in the Brompton district of The Royal Borough of Kensington and Chelsea, London, England, is the world's largest museum of decorative arts and design, housing a permanent collection of over 4.5 million objects...
Archive]