Blanche Massey (c. 1878? – 1929) was a

Gaiety Girl Gaiety Girls were the chorus girls in Edwardian musical comedies, beginning in the 1890s at the Gaiety Theatre, London, in the shows produced by George Edwardes. The popularity of this genre of musical theatre depended, in part, on the beautifu ...

and actress best known for her stage appearances in London and the United States in the 1890s. Among her appearances in many productions with the

George Edwardes George Joseph Edwardes (né Edwards; 8 October 1855 – 4 October 1915) was an English theatre manager and producer of Irish ancestry who brought a new era in musical theatre to the British stage and beyond. Edwardes started out in theatre ma ...

company, especially in

Edwardian musical comedies Edwardian musical comedy was a form of British musical theatre that extended beyond the reign of King Edward VII in both directions, beginning in the early 1890s, when the Gilbert and Sullivan operas' dominance had ended, until the rise of the A ...

, she was perhaps most remembered for ''

A Gaiety Girl ''A Gaiety Girl'' is an English Edwardian musical comedy, musical comedy in two acts by a team of musical comedy neophytes: Owen Hall (book, on an outline by James T. Tanner), Harry Greenbank (lyrics) and Sidney Jones (composer), Sidney Jones (mu ...

''.

Life and career

Massey was the daughter of

Rose Massey Rose Massey (c.1845 – 23 July 1883) was a 19th-century English stage actress. Massey first appeared at the Haymarket Theatre in London in July 1867, playing the role of Mary Meredith in ''Our American Cousin'', but later gained attention in h ...

, a well-known actress in her time, who died of consumption in 1883. Massey appeared in plays,

Victorian burlesques Victorian burlesque, sometimes known as travesty or extravaganza, is a genre of theatrical entertainment that was popular in Victorian England and in the New York theatre of the mid-19th century. It is a form of parody in which a well-known oper ...

and

as ''A Run of Luck'' (1888), ''

Ruy Blas and the Blasé Roué ''Ruy Blas and the Blasé Roué'' is a Victorian burlesque, burlesque written by A. C. Torr and Herbert F. Clark with music by Meyer Lutz. It is based on the Victor Hugo drama ''Ruy Blas''. The piece was produced by George Edwardes. As with man ...

'' (1889) (incorrectly listed as Blanche Massie), ''

Carmen up to Data ''Carmen up to Data'' is a musical burlesque with a score written by Meyer Lutz. The piece was a spoof of Bizet's 1875 opera ''Carmen''. The libretto was written by G. R. Sims and Henry Pettitt. After a tryout in Liverpool in September 1890, the ...

'' (1890), ''

Cinder Ellen up too Late ''Cinder Ellen up too Late'' is a musical Victorian burlesque, burlesque written by Frederick Hobson Leslie (writing under the pseudonym A. C. Torr) and W. T. Vincent, with music arranged by Meyer Lutz from compositions by Lionel Monckton, Sidney ...

'' (1891), ''

The Geisha ''The Geisha, a story of a tea house'' is an Edwardian musical comedy in two acts. The score was composed by Sidney Jones to a libretto by Owen Hall, with lyrics by Harry Greenbank. Additional songs were written by Lionel Monckton and James ...

'' (1896), ''My Friend the Prince'' (1897), and ''

Lady Madcap ''Lady Madcap'' is an Edwardian musical comedy in two acts, composed by Paul Rubens with a book by Paul Rubens and Nathaniel Newnham-Davis, and lyrics by Paul Rubens and Percy Greenbank. The story concerns a mischievous Earl's daughter who ...

'' (1904). She appeared in both the 1893 West End production of ''

'' and also the 1894

Broadway Broadway may refer to: Theatre * Broadway Theatre (disambiguation) * Broadway theatre, theatrical productions in professional theatres near Broadway, Manhattan, New York City, U.S. ** Broadway (Manhattan), the street **Broadway Theatre (53rd Stree ...

production, playing Alma Somerset, the title role, in the latter. ''

The New York Times ''The New York Times'' (''the Times'', ''NYT'', or the Gray Lady) is a daily newspaper based in New York City with a worldwide readership reported in 2020 to comprise a declining 840,000 paid print subscribers, and a growing 6 million paid ...

'' reviewer wrote, after its Broadway debut in September 1894, that "Blanche Massey is only to be looked at, and few persons will ever tire of looking at her.""The Week at the Theatres"
''

'', 23 September 1894 Massey married actor George F. Tully (1876–1930), an Irish-born actor and appeared in a few silent films in the 1910s.''Who's Who in the Theatre''
p. 1030 (1930)
''Theatrical costume, masks, make-up and wigs: a bibliography and iconography''
p. 488
George Tully
Internet Movie Database, Retrieved August 4, 2011; and She died at age 51.

References

External links

Drawing of Massey
in ''Ruy Blas''
Photo of Massey
{{DEFAULTSORT:Massey, Blanche 1929 deaths 1870s births