Tate Wilkinson by Stephen Hewson YORAG 475

Tate Wilkinson (27 October 173916 November 1803) 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 ...

actor 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 (), li ...

and

manager Management (or managing) is the administration of an organization, whether it is a business, a nonprofit organization, or a government body. It is the art and science of managing resources of the business. Management includes the activities o ...

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 owed his success. His imitations, however, naturally gave offence to the important actors and managers whose peculiarities he hit off to the life.

Garrick Garrick may refer to: * Garrick (name), for the name's origin and people with either the surname or given name, the most famous being: ** David Garrick (1717–1779), English actor * Garrick Club, a London gentlemen's club named in honour of David ...

Peg Woffington Margaret Woffington (18 October 1720 – 28 March 1760), known professionally as Peg Woffington, was an Irish actress and socialite of the Georgian era. Peg and Peggy were a common pet name for those called Margaret until the late 20th centu ...

Samuel Foote Samuel Foote (January 1720 – 21 October 1777) was a British dramatist, actor and theatre manager. He was known for his comedic acting and writing, and for turning the loss of a leg in a riding accident in 1766 to comedic opportunity. Early l ...

and

Sheridan Sheridan may refer to: People Surname *Sheridan (surname) *Philip Sheridan (1831–1888), U.S. Army general after whom the Sheridan tank is named *Richard Brinsley Sheridan (1751–1816), Irish playwright (''The Rivals''), poet and politician ...

, after being delighted with the imitations of the others, were among the most angry when it came to their turn, and threatened never to forgive him. Garrick never did. As an actor, Wilkinson was most successful in Foote's plays, but his list of parts was a long one. In

Shakespearian William Shakespeare ( 26 April 1564 – 23 April 1616) was an English playwright, poet and actor. He is widely regarded as the greatest writer in the English language and the world's pre-eminent dramatist. He is often called England's nation ...

characters he was very popular in the provinces. In 1766 he became a partner of Joseph Baker in the management of several Yorkshire theatres, and married about 1768. He became sole manager after his partner's death in 1770 of a number of theatres on what was then called the Yorkshire Circuit, and he was both liberal and successful.

The Theatre, Leeds The Theatre in Hunslet, Leeds, West Yorkshire, England, was a theatre for summer shows, built in 1771 by Tate Wilkinson and redeveloped in 1867. Mrs Siddons and Ching Lau Lauro appeared here in 1786 and 1834 respectively. It was the only drama t ...

, built to his order in 1771, was part of the circuit.Leodis, Discovering Leeds: The Theatre
Retrieved 17 December 2013 In 1769 he took over

York Theatre Royal York Theatre Royal is a theatre in St Leonard's Place, in York, England, which dates back to 1744. The theatre currently seats 750 people. Whilst the theatre is traditionally a proscenium theatre, it was reconfigured for a season in 2011 to offer ...

, where he also had living quarters. An engraving of him in the role of Mr Popeseye was made; copies can be found in the Murray collection within the York City Archive held at the central York Library. Wilkinson directed with excellent judgment and prosperity for over 30 years. His oddities were notorious, but he was a generous manager. See his ''Memoirs'' (4 vols, 1790) and ''The Wandering Patentee'' (4 vols, 1795).

Company

Among Wilkinson's actors were * Miss Farren *

Bridge Frodsham Bridge Frodsham was an English actor. Life He was born in Frodsham, Cheshire in 1734. He was admitted on the foundation of Westminster School in 1746, but ran away; in 1748, he was received back at the school. He ran away a second time, and ma ...

Julia Glover Julia Betterton Glover (8 January 1779 – 16 July 1850) was an Irish-born stage actress well known for her comic roles in the late 18th and 19th centuries. Biography Glover was born Julia Butterton in 1779 or 1781 in Newry, Ireland. In Lo ...

Dorothea Jordan Dorothea Jordan, née Bland (21 November 17615 July 1816), was an Anglo-Irish actress, as well as a courtesan. She was the long-time mistress (lover), mistress of Duke of Clarence, Prince William, Duke of Clarence, later William IV, and the moth ...

(later mistress of

William IV William IV (William Henry; 21 August 1765 – 20 June 1837) was King of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland and King of Hanover from 26 June 1830 until his death in 1837. The third son of George III, William succeeded h ...

) from 1782 to 1785. *

Elizabeth Satchell Elizabeth Kemble (née Satchell; 1763 – 20 January 1841) was an English actress. Life She was born in London, and she was a talented performer when she married Stephen Kemble, of the Kemble family, in 1783. They acted together for several yea ...

* Mrs. Siddons and the other Kembles * Dicky Suett

Notes

References

* * * * Wm. Archer, ''Actors and Actresses of Great Britain and the United States'', edited by

Matthews Matthews may refer to: People * Matthews (surname) Places * Matthews Island, Antarctica * Matthews Range, Kenya * Mount Matthews, New Zealand United States * Matthews, Georgia * Matthews, Indiana * Matthews, Maryland * Matthews, Missouri * Mat ...

and Hutton (New York, 1886) * H. B. Baker, ''Our Old Actors'' (London, 1881) {{DEFAULTSORT:Wilkinson, Tate English male stage actors English theatre managers and producers Actor-managers 1739 births 1803 deaths