Myra Kemble (17 November 1857 – 27 October 1906) was an Australian stage actress.

Life

Early life and career

Myra Kemble was born on 17 November 1857 in Sligo, Ireland, to Pritchard and Teresa Joseph Gill . She emigrated to the

Colony of Victoria In modern parlance, a colony is a territory subject to a form of foreign rule. Though dominated by the foreign colonizers, colonies remain separate from the administration of the original country of the colonizers, the '' metropolitan state'' ...

when she was seven, and was educated at Geelong Convent School. In 1874, Kemble made her stage debut as

Venus Venus is the second planet from the Sun. It is sometimes called Earth's "sister" or "twin" planet as it is almost as large and has a similar composition. As an interior planet to Earth, Venus (like Mercury) appears in Earth's sky never f ...

in a

pantomime Pantomime (; informally panto) is a type of musical comedy stage production designed for family entertainment. It was developed in England and is performed throughout the United Kingdom, Ireland and (to a lesser extent) in other English-speaking ...

at the

Theatre Royal, Melbourne The Theatre Royal was one of the premier theatres for nearly 80 years in the city of Melbourne, Victoria, Australia, from 1855 to 1932. It was located at what is now 236 Bourke Street, once the heart of the city's theatre and entertainment distri ...

titled ''Twinkle Twinkle Little Star''. For some years she held the place of "leading lady" in various companies, and has been equally a favourite in all the cities of Australia and New Zealand. Kemble's onstage debut was in around 1872–1873 at the Old Queen's Theatre in Sydney. On 10 December 1878 Kemble married Mr James H. White (known as 'Eyeglass White'), a Sydney bookmaker, at St Mary's Cathedral in Sydney (following on from the earlier registration of their marriage at a registry office in Melbourne). In 1890 Miss Kemble paid her first visit to England, when she purchased the colonial "rights" of ''Dr. Bill'', by Charles Hamilton Aide, and other pieces. During her sojourn in London, Mr. Robert Buchanan wrote the play ''Man and the Woman'' especially for the popular colonial actress, who produced it at a ''matinée'' at the Criterion, where, however, despite excellent acting, it did not prove successful. After Miss Kemble's return to Sydney she made a brilliant reappearance at the Criterion Theatre in that city in ''Dr. Bill'', and she toured the various colonies. Kemble died in

Melbourne Melbourne ( ; Boonwurrung/Woiwurrung: ''Narrm'' or ''Naarm'') is the capital and most populous city of the Australian state of Victoria, and the second-most populous city in both Australia and Oceania. Its name generally refers to a met ...

, Victoria, Australia, on 27 October 1906.

Select theatre credits

*''New Magdalen'' *''Queen Mary'' *''Uncle Tom's Cabin'' *'' Pygmalion and Galatea'' *''

Hamlet ''The Tragedy of Hamlet, Prince of Denmark'', often shortened to ''Hamlet'' (), is a tragedy written by William Shakespeare sometime between 1599 and 1601. It is Shakespeare's longest play, with 29,551 words. Set in Denmark, the play depicts ...

'' (1877) *''

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 ...

'' (1877) *''The Woman in White'' (1878) *''Arrah-na-Pogue'' (1878, 1880) *''

The Heir at Law ''The Heir at Law'' (1797) is a comedic play in five acts by George Colman the Younger that remained popular through the 19th century. It and ''John Bull'' (1803) were Colman's best known comedies.Dabundo, Laura (ed.Encyclopedia of Romanticism ...

'' *''In Chancery'' *''Hans, the Boatman'' *''East Lynne'' (1880) *''The New Babylon'' (1880) *''Youth'' (1885) *''Sophia'' (1888, 1889) *''Dr Bill'' (1890, 1891) *''Moths''

External links

Images of Myra Kemble
at State Library Victoria.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Kemble, Myra 1857 births 1906 deaths Irish emigrants to colonial Australia Actresses from Melbourne 19th-century Australian women 20th-century Australian women People from Sligo (town)