Jane Cibber ( Johnson; 1704/1706 — 1733) was a British

stage actress An actor or actress is a person who portrays a character in a performance. The actor performs "in the flesh" in the traditional medium of the theatre or in modern media such as film, radio, and television. The analogous Greek term is (), lite ...

.''The Routledge Anthology of Restoration and Eighteenth-Century Drama'', pg. XIII

Life

She was born in 1704 or 1706 as Jane Johnson. Her guardian was the writer Richard Savage. Originally appearing at

Drury Lane Theatre The Theatre Royal, Drury Lane, commonly known as Drury Lane, is a West End theatre and Grade I listed building in Covent Garden, London, England. The building faces Catherine Street (earlier named Bridges or Brydges Street) and backs onto Drur ...

as Jane Johnson, in 1725 she married

Theophilus Cibber Theophilus Cibber (25 or 26 November 1703 – October 1758) was an English actor, playwright, author, and son of the actor-manager Colley Cibber. He began acting at an early age, and followed his father into theatrical management. In 1727, Alex ...

the son of actor-manager

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 ...

.Koon p. 109 She had four children with him while continuing to act on the stage in a mixture of comedies and tragedies. When

Elizabeth Younger Elizabeth Younger whose married name was Elizabeth Finch (2 September 1699 – 24 November 1762), was an actress and dancer. Her sister was the singer and actress Margaret Bicknell.''Younger arried name Finch Elizabeth (1699–1762), actress and ...

defected to work for the

Lincoln's Inn Fields Theatre Lisle's Tennis Court was a building off Portugal Street in Lincoln's Inn Fields in London. Originally built as a real tennis court, it was used as a playhouse during two periods, 1661–1674 and 1695–1705. During the early period, ...

company, she took over the roles she had been playing. In 1731, she played the title role in ''

Caelia Caelia (or Celia) is a Fairy Queen in Richard Johnson's romance ''Tom a Lincoln''. Caelia is the ruler of an island called "Fairy Land," populated by women who have slain their warmongering men. She begs Tom and his companions to stay on the islan ...

'' by Charles Johnson. She died after childbirth in 1733. Her husband said he would never remarry. He did in 1734.

Selected roles

* Polyxena in ''

Hecuba Hecuba (; also Hecabe; grc, Ἑκάβη, Hekábē, ) was a queen in Greek mythology, the wife of King Priam of Troy during the Trojan War. Description Hecuba was described by the chronicler Malalas in his account of the ''Chronography'' as "da ...

'' by Richard West (1726) * Jenny in ''

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 ...

'' (1728) * Ianthe in ''

Love in a Riddle ''Love in a Riddle'' is a 1729 ballad opera by the British actor-manager Colley Cibber. It was part of a boom in ballad operas inspired by the enormous success of John Gay's ''The Beggar's Opera'' the previous year. The original Drury Lane cast ...

'' (1729) * Cleone in ''

Timoleon Timoleon (Ancient Greek language, Greek: wikt:Τιμολέων, Τιμολέων), son of Timodemus, of Ancient Corinth, Corinth (c. 411–337 BC) was a Greek statesman and general. As a brilliant general, a champion of Greece against Anci ...

'' by

Benjamin Martyn Benjamin Martyn (1698–1763) was an English writer and government official. He served as the only secretary for the Trustees for the Establishment of the Colony of Georgia in America from 1732 to 1752. He then served as the colony’s agent for th ...

(1730) * Maria in ''

The London Merchant ''The London Merchant (Or The History Of George Barnwell)'' is playwright George Lillo's most famous work. A tragedy that follows the downfall of a young apprentice due to his association with a prostitute, it is remarkable for its use of mid ...

'' (1731) * Caelia in ''

'' (1732) * Clarissa in '' The Modish Couple'' (1732) * Lady Charlotte Gaywit in ''

The Modern Husband ''The Modern Husband'' is a play by Henry Fielding. It first ran on 14 February 1732 at the Royal Theatre, Drury Lane. The plot focuses on a man who sells his wife for money, but then sues for damages by adultery when the money is insufficient. ...

'' by

Henry Fielding Henry Fielding (22 April 1707 – 8 October 1754) was an English novelist, irony writer, and dramatist known for earthy humour and satire. His comic novel '' Tom Jones'' is still widely appreciated. He and Samuel Richardson are seen as founders ...

(1732)

References

Bibliography

* Highfill, Philip H, Burnim, Kalman A. & Langhans, Edward A. ''A Biographical Dictionary of Actors, Actresses, Musicians, Dancers, Managers, and Other Stage Personnel in London, 1660-1800: Garrick to Gyngell''. SIU Press, 1978. * Koon, Helene. ''Colley Cibber: A Biography''. University Press of Kentucky, 2014. * Straub, Kristina, G. Anderson, Misty and O'Quinn, Daniel . ''The Routledge Anthology of Restoration and Eighteenth-Century Drama''. Taylor & Francis, 2017. 18th-century English people English stage actresses British stage actresses 18th-century English actresses 18th-century British actresses 1700s births 1733 deaths {{England-stage-actor-stub