Mary Ann Yates (1728–1787) was an

English English usually refers to: * English language * English people English may also refer to: Peoples, culture, and language * ''English'', an adjective for something of, from, or related to England ** English national ide ...

tragic actress. The daughter of William Graham, a ship's steward and his wife, Mary, she married Richard Yates (c. 1706-1796), a well-known comedian of the time. In 1754, aged 25, she appeared at Drury Lane as Marcia in

Samuel Crisp Samuel Crisp (1707 – 24 April 1783) was an English dramatist. He is known for the play ''Virginia'', produced at Drury Lane in 1754. Life He was baptised on 14 November 1707. His father Samuel Crisp, a London merchant, was a grandson of the the ...

's ''

Virginia Virginia, officially the Commonwealth of Virginia, is a state in the Mid-Atlantic and Southeastern regions of the United States, between the Atlantic Coast and the Appalachian Mountains. The geography and climate of the Commonwealth ar ...

''.

David Garrick David Garrick (19 February 1717 – 20 January 1779) was an English actor, playwright, theatre manager and producer who influenced nearly all aspects of European theatrical practice throughout the 18th century, and was a pupil and friend of Sa ...

played the part of Virginius. Yates was gradually entrusted with all the leading parts and succeeded the then famous actress Mrs Cibber as the leading tragedienne of the English stage. She was in turn succeeded and eclipsed by the famous

Sarah Siddons Sarah Siddons (''née'' Kemble; 5 July 1755 – 8 June 1831) was a Welsh actress, the best-known tragedienne of the 18th century. Contemporaneous critic William Hazlitt dubbed Siddons as "tragedy personified". She was the elder sister of John ...

. There were benefit performances for Yates in 1797 at The Haymarket which included an appearance by

Harriett Litchfield Harriett Litchfield or Miss Sylvester Hay (4 March 1777 – 11 January 1854) was a British actress. Life Sylvester Hay's birth is considered to be on 4 March 1777. Her paternal grandfather had been the vicar of Malden, but her father, John Sylv ...

.K. A. Crouch, ‘Litchfield , Harriett (1777–1854)’, Oxford Dictionary of National Biography, Oxford University Press, 2004; online edn, Jan 200
accessed 1 Feb 2015
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Selected roles

* Marcia in ''

'' by

(1754) * Sandane in ''

Agis Agis or AGIS may refer to: People * Agis I (died 900 BC), Spartan king * Agis II (died 401 BC), Spartan king * Agis III (died 331 BC), Spartan king * Agis IV (265–241 BC), Spartan king * Agis (Paeonian) (died 358 BC), King of the Paeonians * Ag ...

'' by

John Home Rev John Home FRSE (13 September 1722 – 4 September 1808) was a Scottish minister, soldier and author. His play ''Douglas'' was a standard Scottish school text until the Second World War, but his work is now largely neglected. In 1783 he wa ...

(1758) * Mandane in ''

The Orphan of China ''The Orphan of China'' is a 1759 tragedy by the Irish writer Arthur Murphy, based on the traditional Chinese play ''The Orphan of Zhao'' with the setting moved forwards from the twelfth to the seventeenth century. Although his work, written fro ...

'' by Arthur Murphy (1759) * Mrs Lovemore in ''

The Way to Keep Him ''The Way to Keep Him'' is a 1760 comedy play by the Irish writer Arthur Murphy. Originally three-acts in length, it premiered at the Drury Lane Theatre in a double bill with Murphy's ''The Desert Island''. Actor-manager David Garrick appeared ...

'' by Arthur Murphy (1760) * Araminta in '' The School for Lovers'' by William Whitehead (1762) * Mrs Knightly in '' The Discovery'' by

Frances Sheridan Frances Sheridan (''née'' Chamberlaine) (1724 – 26 September 1766) was an Anglo-Irish novelist and playwright. Life Frances Chamberlaine was born in Dublin, Ireland. Her father, Dr. Phillip Chamberlaine, was an Anglican minister. In 1747 ...

(1763) * Mandane in ''

Cyrus Cyrus (Persian: کوروش) is a male given name. It is the given name of a number of Persian kings. Most notably it refers to Cyrus the Great ( BC). Cyrus is also the name of Cyrus I of Anshan ( BC), King of Persia and the grandfather of Cyrus t ...

'' by

John Hoole John Hoole (December 1727 – 2 August 1803) was an English translator, the son of Samuel Hoole (born 1692), a mechanic, and Sarah Drury (c. 1700 – c. 1793), the daughter of a Clerkenwell clockmaker. He became a personal friend of Samuel John ...

(1768) * Ismena in ''

Timanthes Timanthes of Cythnus ( el, Τιμάνϑης) was an ancient Greek painter of the fourth century BC. The most celebrated of his works was a picture representing the sacrifice of Iphigenia, in which he finely depicted the emotions of those who to ...

(1770) * Clementina in ''

Clementina Clementina may refer to: Literature *Clementine literature, or Clementina, a 2nd-century religious romance * ''Clementina'' (play), a 1771 tragedy by Hugh Kelly *Clementina (character), a fictional character in the ''Jeeves'' series Other uses *C ...

'' by Hugh Kelly (1771) * Duchess in '' Braganza'' by

Robert Jephson Robert Jephson (1736 – 31 May 1803) was an Irish dramatist and politician. Life He was born in Ireland, a younger son of John Jephson, Archdeacon of Cloyne. He entered Trinity College, Dublin in 1751, but left without a degree. He then j ...

(1775) * Edwina in ''

The Battle of Hastings The Battle of Hastings nrf, Batâle dé Hastings was fought on 14 October 1066 between the Norman-French army of William, the Duke of Normandy, and an English army under the Anglo-Saxon King Harold Godwinson, beginning the Norman Conquest ...

'' by

Richard Cumberland Richard Cumberland may refer to: * Richard Cumberland (philosopher) (1631–1718), bishop, philosopher * Richard Cumberland (dramatist) (1732–1811), civil servant, dramatist * Richard Cumberland (priest) (1710–1737), Archdeacon of Northa ...

(1778) * Zoraida in '' Zoraida'' by William Hodson (1779)

References

External links

Peter Thomson: ''Mary Ann Yates''
at the ''

Oxford Dictionary of National Biography The ''Dictionary of National Biography'' (''DNB'') is a standard work of reference on notable figures from British history, published since 1885. The updated ''Oxford Dictionary of National Biography'' (''ODNB'') was published on 23 September ...

''. * English stage actresses English Shakespearean actresses 18th-century English actresses 1728 births 1787 deaths {{England-stage-actor-stub