Elizabeth Johnson (1771 – June 18, 1830), known primarily by the stage name Mrs. Johnson but also known by her maiden name Elizabeth Ford and the stage name Miss Ford, was an English actress who had an influential transatlantic stage career in England and the United States from 1790 through 1817.

Life and career

Born Elizabeth Ford in

Ipswich, Suffolk Ipswich () is a port town and borough in Suffolk, England, of which it is the county town. The town is located in East Anglia about away from the mouth of the River Orwell and the North Sea. Ipswich is both on the Great Eastern Main Line railw ...

, England in 1771, she was the daughter of Major Ford. She began her career with John Brunton's circuit of theatres in Norfolk sometime before 1790.Dunlap, p. 149 The earliest specific record of one of her performances was at

Theatre Royal, Norwich The Theatre Royal is an art-deco theatre in Norwich, Norfolk, England. It is one of the country's oldest established theatres. It hosts a large range of touring productions. The theatre had a £10m refurbishment in 2007, designed by Tim Foster ...

in 1790 where she was acting under the name Miss Ford. She married the actor John Johnson (1759–1819) around this times, and in 1772 began appearing on the stage as Mrs. Johnson; the name she used for the rest of her career. In 1793–1794 she was committed to the

Old Orchard Street Theatre The Old Orchard Street Theatre in Bath, Somerset, England was built as a provincial theatre before becoming a Roman Catholic Church and since 1865 has been a Masonic Hall. It is a Grade II listed building. Theatre In 1705 the first theatre open ...

in Bath and

Bristol Old Vic Bristol Old Vic is a British theatre company based at the Theatre Royal, Bristol. The present company was established in 1946 as an offshoot of the Old Vic in London. It is associated with the Bristol Old Vic Theatre School, which became a fin ...

in Bristol; appearing in

Tate Wilkinson Tate Wilkinson (27 October 173916 November 1803) was an English actor and manager. Life He was the son of a clergyman and was sent to Harrow. His first attempts at acting were badly received, and it was to his wonderful gift of mimicry that he ...

's ''The Wandering Patentee''. Wilkinson stated of Johnson's performance that "she was most favorably received but too lavishly puffed. Wilkinson also engaged Johnson for performances in York in August and September 1794. Johnson and her husband first came to the United States in 1795 after being engaged by impresario and actor John Hodgkinson for performances with his

Old American Company The Old American Company was an American theatre company. It was the first fully professional theatre company to perform in North America. It also played a vital role in the theatre history of Jamaica. It was founded in 1752 and disbanded in 1805. ...

. The couple made their American debuts in

Colley Cibber Colley Cibber (6 November 1671 – 11 December 1757) was an English actor-manager, playwright and Poet Laureate. His colourful memoir ''Apology for the Life of Colley Cibber'' (1740) describes his life in a personal, anecdotal and even rambling ...

's ''

The Provoked Husband ''The Provoked Husband'' is a 1728 comedy play by the British writer and actor Colley Cibber, based on a fragment of play written by John Vanbrugh. It is also known by the longer title ''The Provok'd Husband: or, a Journey to London''. Vanbrugh ...

'' at the

Federal Street Theatre The Federal Street Theatre (1793–1852), also known as the Boston Theatre, was located at the corner of Federal and Franklin streets in Boston, Massachusetts, United States. It was "the first building erected purposely for theatrical entertainmen ...

in Boston on November 5, 1795.

William Dunlap William Dunlap (February 19, 1766 – September 28, 1839) was a pioneer of American theater. He was a producer, playwright, and actor, as well as a historian. He managed two of New York City's earliest and most prominent theaters, the John Stre ...

in his ''History of the American Theatre'' (1832), wrote the following description of Johnson's early appearances in the United States,

Mrs. Johnson was a tall, elegant, beautiful young woman, whose taste in dress made her a model for the belles of the city, and whose manners were as fascinating off as on the stage. Her irreproachable character and demeanour rendered her playfulness harmless to herself or others, for the most licentious would see at a glance that he must not approach, in that character, within the circle of her influence. She was almost too tall, yet the spectator did not wish lier shorter, and if any movement appeared like an approach to awkwardness, it was only to be attributed to modesty. She had not the self-possession of Miss Farren or Mrs. Merry, though more like the first than the last. She was more beautiful, but not so good an actress as either, and at the time we now speak of, America had not seen so perfect a fine lady in comedy."

References

Bibliography

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Johnson, Elizabeth 1771 births 1830 deaths 18th-century English actresses 19th-century English actresses Actresses from Ipswich English stage actresses British expatriate actresses in the United States