Maria Isabella Nossiter (1735 – 25 April 1759) was a

British British may refer to: Peoples, culture, and language * British people, nationals or natives of the United Kingdom, British Overseas Territories, and Crown Dependencies. ** Britishness, the British identity and common culture * British English, ...

stage actress. She died young having risen to a high salary and owning a share of a Dublin theatre.

Life

Nossiter was born in 1735 and she is believed to be the daughter of

George Cholmondeley, 3rd Earl of Cholmondeley George Cholmondeley, 3rd Earl of Cholmondeley, (2 January 1703 – 10 June 1770), styled as Viscount Malpas from 1725 to 1733, was a British Whig politician and nobleman who sat in the House of Commons from 1724 to 1733. Life Cholmondeley wa ...

and his "favourite" housekeeper. She was brought up well enjoying both an education and money. She was tutored by the leading actor, impresario and widower,

Spranger Barry Spranger Barry (23 November 1719 – 10 January 1777) was an Irish actor. Life He was born in Skinner's Row, Dublin, the son of a silversmith, to whose business he was brought up. He took over the business but was not successful. His fir ...

. At the age of eighteen she appeared in the leading role of Juliet opposite Barry (who appeared as Romeo) at

Covent Garden Covent Garden is a district in London, on the eastern fringes of the West End, between St Martin's Lane and Drury Lane. It is associated with the former fruit-and-vegetable market in the central square, now a popular shopping and tourist si ...

in October 1753. The appearance was said to have an extra twist as it was understood that Nossiter and Barry were lovers. Nossitor was taking the role that

Susanna Maria Cibber Susannah Maria Cibber (née Arne; February 1714 – 30 January 1766) was a celebrated English singer and actress. She was the sister of the composer Thomas Arne. Although she began her career as a soprano, her voice lowered in the early part of ...

would have taken but she was appearing at

Drury Lane Drury Lane is a street on the eastern boundary of the Covent Garden area of London, running between Aldwych and High Holborn. The northern part is in the borough of Camden and the southern part in the City of Westminster. Notable landmarks ...

. On the night Susanna Cibber came to watch the performance in what had been "her role", but despite this Nossiter gave a good performance and she came to be an audience favourite. The following month she appeared, again with Barry, as Belvedira in ''

Venice Preserv'd ''Venice Preserv'd'' is an English Restoration play written by Thomas Otway, and the most significant tragedy of the English stage in the 1680s. It was first staged in 1682, with Thomas Betterton as Jaffeir and Elizabeth Barry as Belvidera. The ...

''. Macnamara Morgan wrote the tragedy ''Philoclea'' which premiered at

on 22 January 1754. The play was based on

Philip Sidney Philip, also Phillip, is a male given name, derived from the Greek language, Greek (''Philippos'', lit. "horse-loving" or "fond of horses"), from a compound of (''philos'', "dear", "loved", "loving") and (''hippos'', "horse"). Prominent Philip ...

’s ''

Arcadia Arcadia may refer to: Places Australia * Arcadia, New South Wales, a suburb of Sydney * Arcadia, Queensland * Arcadia, Victoria Greece * Arcadia (region), a region in the central Peloponnese * Arcadia (regional unit), a modern administrative un ...

'' and it was presented for nine nights. Nossiter took the lead role in ''Philoclea'' and it was said that the play had been "brought forward and wrote purposely to show her to advantage by McNamara Morgan". She and Barry lived in

Bow Street Bow Street is a thoroughfare in Covent Garden, Westminster, London. It connects Long Acre, Russell Street and Wellington Street, and is part of a route from St Giles to Waterloo Bridge. The street was developed in 1633 by Francis Russell, 4 ...

, but disagreements over money made them take work at the

Smock Alley Theatre Since the 17th century, there have been numerous theatres in Dublin with the name Smock Alley. The current Smock Alley Theatre () is a 21st-century theatre in Dublin, converted from a 19th-century church building, incorporating structural mat ...

in Dublin where Nossiter was paid £500 for a season's work. In the following season of 1755-1756 they left Dublin to return to the Covent Garden theatre where they played several parts opposite each other including ''

King Lear ''King Lear'' is a tragedy written by William Shakespeare. It is based on the mythological Leir of Britain. King Lear, in preparation for his old age, divides his power and land between two of his daughters. He becomes destitute and insane an ...

'', ''

The Double Dealer ''The Double Dealer'' is a comic play written by English playwright William Congreve, first produced in 1693. Henry Purcell set it to music. Characters and plot This comedy sees character Mellefont, nephew and prospective heir of Lord Touchw ...

'', and ''

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 ...

''. Nossiter wrote her will in the parish of

St George's, Hanover Square St George's, Hanover Square, is an Anglican church, the parish church of Mayfair in the City of Westminster, central London, built in the early eighteenth century as part of a project to build fifty new churches around London (the Queen Anne C ...

. The actress

George Anne Bellamy George Anne Bellamy (''née'' O'Hara; 23 April 173116 February 1788) was an Irish actress. She took leading roles at Theatre Royal, Drury Lane. Her success was rapid, participating in the rivalry for popular favor in ''Romeo and Juliet'' in 1750 ...

said she died of a broken heart as Barry had left her for another actress named Ann Dancer but

tuberculosis Tuberculosis (TB) is an infectious disease usually caused by '' Mycobacterium tuberculosis'' (MTB) bacteria. Tuberculosis generally affects the lungs, but it can also affect other parts of the body. Most infections show no symptoms, in ...

is the likely cause. Her will was written on 11 August 1759 and she died a week later. She left money to her brother and her eighth share of the

Crow Street Theatre Crow Street Theatre was a theatre in Dublin, Ireland, originally opened in 1758 by the actor Spranger Barry. From 1788 until 1818 it was a patent theatre. History Spranger Barry and Henry Woodward The actor Spranger Barry (1719–1777), born i ...

to Barry.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Nossiter, Maria 1735 births 1759 deaths British stage actresses