Ștefan Vellescu (December 24, 1838–October 2, 1899) was a Romanian stage actor and drama teacher. Born in

Craiova Craiova (, also , ), is Romania's 6th Cities in Romania, largest city and capital of Dolj County, and situated near the east bank of the river Jiu River, Jiu in central Oltenia. It is a longstanding political center, and is located at approximatel ...

, he ran away from school at age 16, joining the local troupe of Costache Mihăileanu. Removed thence by his family and sent to continue his education in Bucharest, he again fled shortly afterward, appearing in minor theatrical roles. He then joined

Matei Millo Matei Millo (; November 24/25, 1814 – September 9, 1896) was a Moldavian, later Romanian stage actor and playwright. Born in Stolniceni-Prăjescu, Iași County, his grandfather was the poet Matei Milu; his parents were Vasile Millo and Zamfira ...

’s troupe at Sala Bossel. Four years later, Vellescu entered Elena Theodorini’s company at Craiova, earning plaudits in roles from ''Caterina Howard'' (

Errico Petrella Errico Petrella (10 December 18137 April 1877) was an Italian opera composer. Life and career Petrella was born at Palermo, capital of the Kingdom of Sicily. A conservative of the Neapolitan school, he was the most successful Italian compose ...

), '' La Dame aux Camélias'' ( Alexandre Dumas ''fils''), ''

Othello ''Othello'' (full title: ''The Tragedy of Othello, the Moor of Venice'') is a tragedy written by William Shakespeare, probably in 1603, set in the contemporary Ottoman–Venetian War (1570–1573) fought for the control of the Island of Cypru ...

'' ( William Shakespeare) and ''Les Filles de marbre'' (

Théodore Barrière Théodore Barrière (1823 – 16 October 1877), French playwright, was born in Paris. He belonged to a family of map engravers which had long been connected with the war department, and spent nine years in that service himself. The success o ...

Dimitrie R. Rosetti Dimitrie is the Romanian form of a Slavic given name. Notable persons with that name include: ;First name * Dimitrie Alexandresco (1850–1925), Romanian encyclopedist * Dimitrie Anghel (1872–1914), Romanian poet * Dimitri Atanasescu (1836–1 ...

, ''Dicționarul contimporanilor'', pp. 191-92. Bucharest: Editura Lito-Tipografiei Populara, 1897 as well as playing the lead in

Alfred de Vigny Alfred Victor, Comte de Vigny (27 March 1797 – 17 September 1863) was a French poet and early French Romanticist. He also produced novels, plays, and translations of Shakespeare. Biography Vigny was born in Loches (a town to which he never re ...

’s ''Chatterton''. Vellescu then returned to Bucharest, subsequently moving to

Iași Iași ( , , ; also known by other alternative names), also referred to mostly historically as Jassy ( , ), is the second largest city in Romania and the seat of Iași County. Located in the historical region of Moldavia, it has traditionally ...

, where he played in ''

Don César de Bazan ''Don César de Bazan'' is an opéra comique in four acts by Jules Massenet to a French libretto by Adolphe d'Ennery, Philippe-François Pinel "Dumanoir" and Jules Chantepie, based on the play by d'Ennery and Dumanoir, which was first perform ...

'' (

Jules Massenet Jules Émile Frédéric Massenet (; 12 May 1842 – 13 August 1912) was a French composer of the Romantic era best known for his operas, of which he wrote more than thirty. The two most frequently staged are '' Manon'' (1884) and ''Werther' ...

) and ''The Barber of Seville'' ( Pierre Beaumarchais). Briefly stopping in Bucharest again, he played the title role in

V. A. Urechia V. A. Urechia (most common version of Vasile Alexandrescu Urechia, ; born Vasile Alexandrescu and also known as Urechiă, Urechea, Ureche, Popovici-Ureche or Vasile Urechea-Alexandrescu; 15 February 1834 – 21 November 1901) was a Moldavian, ...

’s '' Vornicul Bucioc''. In 1867, sent by Urechia,"Velescu, Ștefan"
at the Alexandru and Aristia Aman County Library he left for Paris, studying drama under

François-Joseph Regnier François-Joseph-Philoclès Regnier de La Brière called Regnier (1 April 1807, in Paris – 27 April 1885, in Paris) was a 19th-century French actor and playwright. The comedian Alcide Tousez was his uncle. Biography After he studied at the ...

. Three years later, he returned to the stage, distinguishing himself in ''Le Supplice d'une femme'' (Dumas ''fils''), ''

King John King John may refer to: Rulers * John, King of England (1166–1216) * John I of Jerusalem (c. 1170–1237) * John Balliol, King of Scotland (c. 1249–1314) * John I of France (15–20 November 1316) * John II of France (1319–1364) * John I o ...

'' (Shakespeare) and ''Le gamin de Paris'' (

Jean-François Bayard Jean-François Alfred Bayard (17 March 1796, Charolles, Saône-et-Loire – 20 February 1853, Paris) was a French playwright. He was the nephew of fellow playwright Eugène Scribe. Life As a law student and a lawyer's clerk, Bayard wrote with pa ...

), the latter in 1877. In 1873, Vellescu was named professor of declamation at the

Bucharest Conservatory The National University of Music Bucharest ( ro, Universitatea Naţională de Muzică București, UNMB) is a university-level school of music located in Bucharest, Romania. Established as a school of music in 1863 and reorganized as an academy in ...

, where his students included

Grigore Manolescu Grigore Manolescu (March 28, 1857–July 14, 1892) was a Romanian stage actor. Born in Bucharest, Dimitrie R. Rosetti, ''Dicționarul contimporanilor'', p. 121. Bucharest: Editura Lito-Tipografiei Populara, 1897 he left his family at age 14 in ...

Constantin I. Nottara Constantin I. Nottara (June 5, 1859–October 16/17, 1935) was a Romanian stage actor and director. Born in Bucharest into a middle-class family of Byzantine Greek origin, he attended a private school from 1866 to 1870, followed by Saint Sa ...

and Ion Brezeanu.Doina Pană, “Din trecutul învățământului teatral din România. Institutul de teatru ‘Szentgyörgyi István’ din Târgu-Mureș”, in ''Sargetia'', nr. V (XLI)/2014, p. 408 Among his publications are ''Istoria artei dramatice'' in ''Revista românească'' and ''Curs de declamațiune'' in ''Revista literară'', as well as criticism. He wrote several dramas and comedies that appeared at the

National Theatre Bucharest The National Theatre Bucharest ( ro, Teatrul Naţional "Ion Luca Caragiale" București) is one of the national theatres of Romania, located in the capital city of Bucharest. Founding It was founded as the ''Teatrul cel Mare din București'' ("Gra ...

, where he was assistant director: ''Lăpușneanul'', ''Banul Craiovei'', ''Prea târziu'', ''Mincinosul'' (in which

Aristizza Romanescu Aristizza Romanescu (December 24, 1854, Craiova – June 4, 1918, Iași) was a Romanian stage actress, active 1872–1918.George Marcu (coord.), Dicţionarul personalităţilor feminine din România, Editura Meronia, București, 2009. Life In 191 ...

played), ''Blond sau Brun'' and ''Hagi-Bina''. He authored several poems and short stories, including “Din Florești”, “Moș Tudor” and “Schițe din viața contimporană”. He served on the Bucharest City Council and, from 1890 to 1895, was employed by the vital records division.

Notes

{{DEFAULTSORT:Vellescu, Stefan 1838 births 1899 deaths Romanian male stage actors 19th-century Romanian male actors Romanian male Shakespearean actors Romanian theatre critics Romanian theatre managers and producers People from Craiova Academic staff of the National University of Music Bucharest Romanian civil servants Councillors in Romania 19th-century Romanian dramatists and playwrights