William Rignold (1836–1904) was an English actor. Rignold began acting as a teenager, together with his brother

George George may refer to: People * George (given name) * George (surname) * George (singer), American-Canadian singer George Nozuka, known by the mononym George * George Washington, First President of the United States * George W. Bush, 43rd Presiden ...

Biography

William Rignold was the first son of the actor William Ross Rignold (1813–1883) and his wife, the actress Patricia Blaxland (1800–1888). A second son,

, also entered the theatrical profession.Foulkes, Richard, "Rignold, George Richard (1839–1912)"
Oxford Dictionary of National Biography''
Oxford University Press, Sept 2004; online edn, Jan 2008, accessed 7 June 2009 Both the brothers were brought up as musicians, and William was a capable violinist, but they both forsook music for the stage in their late teens. In 1860 Rignold had a leading role in ''The Dead Heart'' at the Theatre Royal, Bristol, and the following year he was judged "very amusing as a foppish man of the world" in ''The Romance of a Poor Young Man'' at the same theatre. His brother George was also a member of the company at the Theatre Royal. In the production of ''

A Midsummer Night's Dream ''A Midsummer Night's Dream'' is a comedy written by William Shakespeare 1595 or 1596. The play is set in Athens, and consists of several subplots that revolve around the marriage of Theseus and Hippolyta. One subplot involves a conflict amon ...

'' with which the new

Theatre Royal, Bath The Theatre Royal in Bath, England, was built in 1805. A Grade II* listed building, it has been described by the Theatres Trust as "One of the most important surviving examples of Georgian theatre architecture". It has a capacity for an audien ...

, opened on 4 March 1863 William played Lysander, and George played Theseus, in a cast that included Charles Coghlan,

Henrietta Hodson Henrietta Hodson (26 March 1841 – 30 October 1910) was an English actress and theatre manager best known for her portrayal of comedy roles in the Victorian era. She had a long affair with the journalist-turned-politician Henry Labouchère, ...

Ellen Terry Dame Alice Ellen Terry, (27 February 184721 July 1928), was a leading English actress of the late 19th and early 20th centuries. Born into a family of actors, Terry began performing as a child, acting in Shakespeare plays in London, and tour ...

, William Robertson and his daughter Madge. Rignold made his London debut in 1869 in ''Marie Antoinette'' at the

Princess's Theatre The Princess's Theatre or Princess Theatre was a theatre in Oxford Street, London. The building opened in 1828 as the "Queen's Bazaar" and housed a diorama by Clarkson Stanfield and David Roberts. It was converted into a theatre and opened in 1 ...

, receiving a good review from the leading theatrical paper, '' The Era''. He followed this with successful appearances in

Dion Boucicault Dionysius Lardner "Dion" Boucicault (né Boursiquot; 26 December 1820 – 18 September 1890) was an Irish actor and playwright famed for his melodramas. By the later part of the 19th century, Boucicault had become known on both sides of the ...

's ''Presumptive Evidence'', which played in a double bill with

Handel George Frideric (or Frederick) Handel (; baptised , ; 23 February 1685 – 14 April 1759) was a German-British Baroque composer well known for his operas, oratorios, anthems, concerti grossi, and organ concertos. Handel received his training i ...

's opera '' Acis and Galatea'' starring

Blanche Cole Blanche Cole (1851 – 31 August 1888) was an English soprano. Showing promise as a child, Cole went on to have a successful operatic career, during which she sang 21 roles in English versions of operas in London and the British provinces. She d ...

. Rignold played Sir George Wilson in Robert Buchanan's ''Joseph's Sweetheart'' in 1888. In 1890, he appeared at

Her Majesty's Theatre, Sydney Her Majesty's Theatre, Sydney, Australia, refers to three theatres of the same name. One was a theatre which opened on 10 September 1887 and closed on 10 June 1933. It was located on the corner of Pitt and Market Street, Sydney, where Westfie ...

, in ''

The Merry Wives of Windsor ''The Merry Wives of Windsor'' or ''Sir John Falstaff and the Merry Wives of Windsor'' is a comedy by William Shakespeare first published in 1602, though believed to have been written in or before 1597. The Windsor of the play's title is a ref ...

''. The lessee and manager was his brother George, who played Ford to William's Falstaff. At the end of the century Rignold's eyesight failed, leaving him unable to perform. A benefit fund was set up, and a fund-raising show was given at the Lyric Theatre. Richard Temple, Vernon Cave and

Powis Pinder Powis Pinder (6 September 1872 – 25 July 1941) was an operatic baritone who created a number of minor roles in the Savoy Operas and played a range of more important parts in Gilbert and Sullivan operas and other works during a two decade l ...

performed ''

Cox and Box ''Cox and Box; or, The Long-Lost Brothers'', is a one-act comic opera with a libretto by F. C. Burnand and music by Arthur Sullivan, based on the 1847 farce '' Box and Cox'' by John Maddison Morton. It was Sullivan's first successful comic o ...

'', George Rignold gave a speech from ''

Henry V Henry V may refer to: People * Henry V, Duke of Bavaria (died 1026) * Henry V, Holy Roman Emperor (1081/86–1125) * Henry V, Duke of Carinthia (died 1161) * Henry V, Count Palatine of the Rhine (c. 1173–1227) * Henry V, Count of Luxembourg (121 ...

'', Sheridan's ''

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'' was given by a cast led by

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and

Constance Collier Constance Collier (born Laura Constance Hardie; 22 January 1878 – 25 April 1955) was an English stage and film actress and acting coach. She wrote hit plays and films with Ivor Novello and she was the first person to be treated with insu ...

, and ''

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'' was played by

Rutland Barrington Rutland Barrington (15 January 1853 – 31 May 1922) was an English singer, actor, comedian and Edwardian musical comedy star. Best remembered for originating the lyric baritone roles in the Gilbert and Sullivan operas from 1877 to 1896, his ...

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Evie Greene Edith Elizabeth "Evie" Greene (14 January 1875 – 11 September 1917) was a much-photographed English actress and singer who played in Edwardian musical comedies in London and on Broadway. She starred as Dolores in the international hit musical ' ...

and others.

Lionel Monckton Lionel John Alexander Monckton (18 December 1861 – 15 February 1924) was an English composer of musical theatre. He became Britain's most popular composer of Edwardian musical comedy in the early years of the 20th century. Life and career ...

appeared as the Associate.''

The Times ''The Times'' is a British daily national newspaper based in London. It began in 1785 under the title ''The Daily Universal Register'', adopting its current name on 1 January 1788. ''The Times'' and its sister paper ''The Sunday Times'' (fou ...

'', 6 December 1902, p. 13

Notes

References

"Rignall, George Richard", Australian Dictionary of Biography

{{DEFAULTSORT:Rignold, William 1836 births 1904 deaths English male stage actors 19th-century English male actors