Julia Marlowe
Encyclopedia
England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...
-born American
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
actress known for her interpretations of William Shakespeare
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"...
.
Life and career
Marlowe was born as Sarah Frances Frost near KeswickKeswick, Cumbria
Keswick is a market town and civil parish within the Borough of Allerdale in Cumbria, England. It had a population of 4,984, according to the 2001 census, and is situated just north of Derwent Water, and a short distance from Bassenthwaite Lake, both in the Lake District National Park...
, Cumberland
Cumberland
Cumberland is a historic county of North West England, on the border with Scotland, from the 12th century until 1974. It formed an administrative county from 1889 to 1974 and now forms part of Cumbria....
, England
England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...
, to John Frost and Sarah (Strong) Hodgson. At the age of four her family emigrated to the United States. Her father, who was an avid fan of local sports, "fled to America in 1870 under the erroneous impression that he had destroyed a neighbor's eye by flicking a whip at him during a race." He changed his name to Brough and after first settling in Kansas
Kansas
Kansas is a US state located in the Midwestern United States. It is named after the Kansas River which flows through it, which in turn was named after the Kansa Native American tribe, which inhabited the area. The tribe's name is often said to mean "people of the wind" or "people of the south...
he moved his family east to Portsmouth, Ohio
Portsmouth, Ohio
Portsmouth is a city in the U.S. state of Ohio and the county seat of Scioto County. The municipality is located on the northern banks of the Ohio River and east of the Scioto River in Southern Ohio. The population was 20,226 at the 2010 census.-Foundation:...
and then Cincinnati.
Early career
Marlowe obtained the nickname of "Fanny" and in her early teens began her career in the chorus of a juvenile opera company. While touring with the company for nearly a year performing Gilbert and SullivanGilbert and Sullivan
Gilbert and Sullivan refers to the Victorian-era theatrical partnership of the librettist W. S. Gilbert and the composer Arthur Sullivan . The two men collaborated on fourteen comic operas between 1871 and 1896, of which H.M.S...
's H.M.S. Pinafore
H.M.S. Pinafore
H.M.S. Pinafore; or, The Lass That Loved a Sailor is a comic opera in two acts, with music by Arthur Sullivan and a libretto by W. S. Gilbert. It opened at the Opera Comique in London, England, on 25 May 1878 and ran for 571 performances, which was the second-longest run of any musical...
, under the direction of Colonel Robert E. J. Miles (manager of the Cincinnati Opera House) she was given the part of Sir Joseph Porter. She later played in 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 Pygmalion and Galatea.
Her training and initial success was due primarily to Miles's sister-in-law Ada Dow. Still in Cincinnati, Fanny played her first Shakespearean roles as Balthazar 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 as Maria in Twelfth Night she was billed as Fanny Brough. Soon after Ada Dow took Fanny to New York where for several years she received voice training by Parsons Price. Finished with the voice training she changed her name to Julia Marlowe. As an unknown, twenty-year old Marlowe was, at first, unable to get a Shakesperean role, but she was determined. Colonel Miles, the new manager of the New York Bijou Opera House, gave her the opportunity to play for two weeks on tour in New England. This gave Marlowe the repertoire she needed. On 20 October 1887, her mother hired the Bijou for a matinee of Ingomar, in which Marlowe received acclaim which served as a stepping stone to Broadway.
In early 1891, Marlowe came down with a severe case of typhoid fever while on tour in Philadelphia. The owner of the Philadelphia Times newspaper and his wife took Julia in and oversaw her return to health. At one point her face became so swollen that doctors considered lancing her face to release the toxins, but the good judgment of one doctor prevailed and a different treatment was arrived at which would fight the toxins and save her face for her acting career. Had this measure not been taken, she would never have been performing on Broadway by 1895 and would never have established herself as the leading American actress of Shakespeare in her day alongside actor E. H. Sothern.
She made her Broadway
Broadway theatre
Broadway theatre, commonly called simply Broadway, refers to theatrical performances presented in one of the 40 professional theatres with 500 or more seats located in the Theatre District centered along Broadway, and in Lincoln Center, in Manhattan in New York City...
debut in 1895 and went on to appear in more than seventy Broadway productions. Her first husband was Broadway actor Robert Taber
Robert Taber
Robert Schell Taber was an American Broadway actor of the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries.-Biography:...
. Their marriage lasted from 1894-1900 and produced no children. Taber and Marlowe were married in 1894. According to many who knew her, Marlowe sacrificed her own self-interests many times in order to promote Taber's career. Despite this, however, professional jealousy ended their marriage in 1900. In a letter dated April 2nd, 1895 from Taber he writes "I herewith return your play. Mrs. Taber is grateful for your kindness in submitting it and notwithstanding its interest - She finds it unsuited for her present use. Very truly yours, Robert Taber". Taber was touring in England at the time of their divorce. In 1904, Marlowe starred as Mary Tudor in When Knighthood Was in Flower. This was an enormous success, and made Marlowe financially independent. Other hits for Marlowe followed including Charlotte Oliver in The Cavalier, and Ingomar, both in 1903. Of her performance in the latter, The New York Sun wrote, "There is not a woman player in America or in England that is – attractively considered – fit to unlace her shoe".
Sothern and later years
E. H. Sothern
Edward Hugh Sothern was an American actor who specialized in dashing, romantic leading roles and particularly in Shakespeare roles.-Biography:...
, beginning with their appearances in the title roles 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...
, Beatrice and Benedick 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....
, and the leads in Hamlet. They toured all over the U.S. in these plays, adding The Taming of the Shrew
The Taming of the Shrew
The Taming of the Shrew is a comedy by William Shakespeare, believed to have been written between 1590 and 1591.The play begins with a framing device, often referred to as the Induction, in which a mischievous nobleman tricks a drunken tinker named Sly into believing he is actually a nobleman himself...
, 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...
and Twelfth Night to their repertoire in 1905. Unhappy with their compensation from their 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....
, they continued under the management of the Shubert Brothers, from then on receiving a percentage of the profits. In 1906, together with Sothern, she played the title character in Percy MacKaye's Jeanne d'Arc, Salome
Salome
Salome , the Daughter of Herodias , is known from the New Testament...
in Sudermann's John the Baptist and in The Sunken Bell, receiving favorable reviews. By this time, Marlowe and Sothern were known as the premier Shakespearean actors in their day.
In 1906 Julia wrote a letter to her friend Elisabeth Greer during her 1905-1906 season in which she was performing The Merchant of Venice, The Taming of the Shrew, and Twelfth Night with co-star and future husband, E. H. Sothern. It is believed Mrs. Greer lived in Minneapolis. She offers her friend seats to the performances the coming weekend and promises to come to her on Friday for lunch. The letter reads: St. Paul, Minn. 10 April. 1906 My dear Mrs. Greer: I will go to you for luncheon on Friday, and you are very kind to say I may choose my own time and I do so. I hope 12:30 seems reasonable to you. That will be my breakfast. Will you consult with the other members of your family and decide whether you would like a box for Friday or Saturday evening. With all affectionate greeting to you and cordial remembrances for all your house. I am, Faithfully Julia Marlowe
After another season in New York and then on tour, Sothern, Marlowe and their company crossed the Atlantic to play in London. They were unable to attract audiences in England, however, and returned to America after a season. Back in the U.S., they presented Shakespeare at affordable prices at the Academy of Music
Academy of Music (Manhattan)
The Academy of Music was a New York City opera house, located at East 14th Street and Irving Place in Manhattan. The 4,000-seat hall opened on October 2, 1854. The New York Times review declared it to be an acoustical "triumph", but "In every other aspect .....
in New York, allowing audiences who had not previously been able to afford their productions to see them. Marlowe and Sothern dissolved their company and formed separate companies for a time. She played in J. B. Fagan
J. B. Fagan
James Bernard Fagan was an Irish-born actor, theatre manager, producer and playwright in England. After turning from the law to the stage, Fagan began an acting career, including four years from 1895 to 1899 with Herbert Beerbohm Tree's company at Her Majesty's Theatre. He then began writing...
's Gloria, in Romeo and Juliet and 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...
. in 1908, she played Yvette in Mary Johnston
Mary Johnston
Mary Johnston was an American novelist and women's rights advocate.The daughter of an American Civil War soldier who became a successful lawyer, Mary Johnston was born in the small town of Buchanan, Virginia. A small and frail girl, she was educated at home by family and tutors...
's verse play The Goddess of Reason.
At the end of 1909, Sothern and Marlowe reunited in Antony and Cleopatra. In 1910 they toured in Macbeth
Macbeth
The Tragedy of Macbeth is a play by William Shakespeare about a regicide and its aftermath. It is Shakespeare's shortest tragedy and is believed to have been written sometime between 1603 and 1607...
, receiving enthusiastic notices and bringing the production to New York where it was a hit. They then continued to tour their Shakespearean repertoire, also playing special performances of the plays for children at schools. Marlowe and Sothern married in 1911. Marlowe and Sothern made eleven phonograph recordings for the Victor
Victor Talking Machine Company
The Victor Talking Machine Company was an American corporation, the leading American producer of phonographs and phonograph records and one of the leading phonograph companies in the world at the time. It was headquartered in Camden, New Jersey....
company in 1920 and 1921. These recordings are presumably the only recorded evidence of Marlowe's voice today. After more touring with Sothern in Shakespeare, the two brought their production of 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...
to New York in 1921. Soon afterwards, Marlowe's health was failing, and she retired in 1924. After Sothern's death in 1933, Marlowe became somewhat of a recluse. White haired and still beautiful she'd occasionally visit close friends like ailing playwright Edward Sheldon
Edward Sheldon
Edward Brewster Sheldon was an American dramatist. His plays include Salvation Nell and Romance , which was made into a motion picture with Greta Garbo....
. In 1923, she received an honorary doctorate from George Washington University
George Washington University
The George Washington University is a private, coeducational comprehensive university located in Washington, D.C. in the United States...
, and another in 1943 from Columbia University
Columbia University
Columbia University in the City of New York is a private, Ivy League university in Manhattan, New York City. Columbia is the oldest institution of higher learning in the state of New York, the fifth oldest in the United States, and one of the country's nine Colonial Colleges founded before the...
.
Julia Marlowe died in 1950 in New York City
New York City
New York is the most populous city in the United States and the center of the New York Metropolitan Area, one of the most populous metropolitan areas in the world. New York exerts a significant impact upon global commerce, finance, media, art, fashion, research, technology, education, and...
at the age of 84. She had no children.
External links
- worldcat.org
- Sothern & Marlowe page at Corbis(*though she despised acting in movies she is seen in 1922 cranking a Pathe on her husband E.H. Sothern on board the AquitaniaRMS AquitaniaRMS Aquitania was a Cunard Line ocean liner designed by Leonard Peskett and built by John Brown & Company in Clydebank, Scotland. She was launched on 21 April 1913 and sailed on her maiden voyage to New York on 30 May 1914...
) - Julia Marlowe extensive portrait gallery with photos of first husband Robert Taber, New York Public Library (Billy Rose Collection)
- Julia Marlowe; North American Theatre Online
- Julia Marlowe and E.H. Sothern re-enact scenes from Taming of the Shrew in 1920 recording