Charles Doran (1 January 1877 – 5 April 1964) was an Irish actor, one of the last of the touring

actor-manager An actor-manager is a leading actor who sets up their own permanent theatrical company and manages the business, sometimes taking over a theatre to perform select plays in which they usually star. It is a method of theatrical production used co ...

s in the tradition of Frank Benson, John Martin-Harvey and

Ben Greet Sir Philip Barling Greet (24 September 1857 – 17 May 1936), known professionally as Ben Greet, was a Shakespearean actor, director, impresario and actor-manager. Early life The younger son of Captain William Greet RN and his wife, Sarah Ba ...

. Among those who joined his company at the start of their careers were Cecil Parker, Ralph Richardson, Francis L Sullivan and

Donald Wolfit Sir Donald Wolfit, KBE (born Donald Woolfitt; Harwood, Ronald"Wolfit, Sir Donald (1902–1968)" ''Oxford Dictionary of National Biography'', Oxford University Press, September 2004; online edn, January 2008; accessed 14 July 2009 20 April 1902 ...

. Doran toured with Benson and other managements, and played in the West End before setting up his own company in 1920. He led it for eleven years, before leaving Britain to work in India. On his return he worked on stage and made occasional television appearances.

Life and career

Doran was born on 1 January 1877 in Cork, the son of Charles Jenkins Doran. He was educated in Cork and privately.Parker, pp. 265–266 In 1899 he made his stage debut as a member of Frank Benson's touring company, in ''

Julius Caesar Gaius Julius Caesar (; ; 12 July 100 BC – 15 March 44 BC), was a Roman general and statesman. A member of the First Triumvirate, Caesar led the Roman armies in the Gallic Wars before defeating his political rival Pompey in a civil war, ...

'' at the Theatre Royal,

Belfast Belfast ( , ; from ga, Béal Feirste , meaning 'mouth of the sand-bank ford') is the capital and largest city of Northern Ireland, standing on the banks of the River Lagan on the east coast. It is the 12th-largest city in the United Kingdom ...

. He remained with Benson for two and a half years, during which he made his London debut, as Captain MacMorris in '' Henry V'' at the

Lyceum The lyceum is a category of educational institution defined within the education system of many countries, mainly in Europe. The definition varies among countries; usually it is a type of secondary school. Generally in that type of school the t ...

. In 1903 Doran toured in a stage version of

Tolstoy Count Lev Nikolayevich TolstoyTolstoy pronounced his first name as , which corresponds to the romanization ''Lyov''. () (; russian: link=no, Лев Николаевич Толстой,In Tolstoy's day, his name was written as in pre-refor ...

's ''Resurrection ''. He was engaged by

Fred Terry Fred Terry (9 November 1863 – 17 April 1933) was an English actor and theatrical manager. After establishing his reputation in London and in the provinces for a decade, he joined the company of Sir Herbert Beerbohm Tree where he remained for f ...

and Julia Neilson, and appeared at the New Theatre in 1905, as the Comte de Tournai in ''

The Scarlet Pimpernel ''The Scarlet Pimpernel'' is the first novel in a series of historical fiction by Baroness Orczy, published in 1905. It was written after her stage play of the same title (co-authored with Montague Barstow) enjoyed a long run in London, having ...

''. In 1906, touring with HBIrving he made his first appearance in the US, and the following year toured in South Africa with

Cora Urquhart Brown-Potter Mary Cora Urquhart or Cora Brown–Potter (May 15, 1857 – February 12, 1936) was an American actress who found success in London. Formerly a member of '' The Four Hundred'' in New York'','' she was one of the first American society women to bec ...

's company. In 1907 he returned to Benson's company. In 1908 he toured with

Mrs Patrick Campbell Beatrice Rose Stella Tanner (9 February 1865 – 9 April 1940), better known by her stage name Mrs Patrick Campbell or Mrs Pat, was an English stage actress, best known for appearing in plays by Shakespeare, Shaw and Barrie. She also toured th ...

in '' The Thunderbolt,'' and ''

The Second Mrs Tanqueray ''The Second Mrs. Tanqueray'' is a problem play by Arthur Wing Pinero. It utilises the "Woman with a past" plot, popular in nineteenth century melodrama. The play was first produced in 1893 by the actor-manager George Alexander and despite ca ...

''. During 1909–10 he toured England and Australia with

Oscar Asche John Stange(r) Heiss Oscar Asche (24 January 1871 – 23 March 1936), better known as Oscar Asche, was an Australian actor, director, and writer, best known for having written, directed, and acted in the record-breaking musical ''Chu Chin C ...

and

Lily Brayton Elizabeth "Lily" Brayton (23 June 1876 – 30 April 1953) was an English actress and singer, known for her performances in Shakespeare plays and for her nearly 2,000 performances in the First World War hit musical ''Chu Chin Chow''. Early life ...

(both former members of Benson's troupe). His parts included the title role in ''

The Merchant of Venice ''The Merchant of Venice'' is a play by William Shakespeare, believed to have been written between 1596 and 1598. A merchant in Venice named Antonio defaults on a large loan provided by a Jewish moneylender, Shylock. Although classified as ...

'', Lodovico in '' Othello'', Tranio in ''

The Taming of the Shrew ''The Taming of the Shrew'' is a comedy by William Shakespeare, believed to have been written between 1590 and 1592. The play begins with a framing device, often referred to as the induction, in which a mischievous nobleman tricks a drunken ...

'' and the Soothsayer in ''Julius Caesar''. In October 1910, returning to England, Doran played La Tribe in ''Count Hannibal'' at the New Theatre, after which he was Pistol in '' The Merry Wives of Windsor'' at the

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 ...

to the Falstaff of Asche. For the next ten years he played in new, ephemeral works, interspersed with classics. Among his roles in the latter were Constantine Levin in '' Anna Karenina'' (1913); Douglas in '' Henry IV, part 1 '' and the Constable of France in ''Henry V''. (1914) in London, and a variety of Shakespeare parts at the Memorial Theatre, Stratford-on-Avon (1919). In February 1920 he began touring with his own Shakespearean company, playing

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 ...

, Shylock in ''The Merchant of Venice'', Brutus in ''Julius Caesar'', Malvolio in ''

Twelfth Night ''Twelfth Night'', or ''What You Will'' is a romantic comedy by William Shakespeare, believed to have been written around 1601–1602 as a Twelfth Night's entertainment for the close of the Christmas season. The play centres on the twins Vi ...

'', Prospero in '' The Tempest'', Petruchio in ''The Taming of the Shrew'', Macbeth, Falstaff, Henry V, and Jaques in '' As You Like It''. He had a keen eye for rising talent, and among his recruits were

Noel Streatfeild Mary Noel Streatfeild Order of the British Empire, OBE (24 December 1895 –11 September 1986) was an English author, best known for children's books including the "Shoes" books, which were not a series (though some books made references to ...

, Cecil Parker, Ralph Richardson,

Edith Sharpe Edith Mary Sharpe (14 September 1894 – 6 June 1984) was a British actress. Born in Hackney, London. She married Alexander Francis Part in 1931 and had one child. She appeared in TV series such as Dixon of Dock Green, Z Cars, Emergency Ward ...

Norman Shelley Norman Shelley (16 February 1903 – 21 August 1980) was a British actor, best known for his work in radio, in particular for the BBC's ''Children's Hour''. He also had a recurring role as Colonel Danby in the long-running radio soap opera ''T ...

, Abraham Sofaer, FrancisL Sullivan and

. In 1931 he went to India as director of Shakespeare's plays at the State Theatre in Jhalawar and then on to

Bombay Mumbai (, ; also known as Bombay — the official name until 1995) is the capital city of the Indian state of Maharashtra and the ''de facto'' financial centre of India. According to the United Nations, as of 2018, Mumbai is the second-m ...

where he performed primarily in Shakespeare on the radio. He returned to England in 1937. His last London appearance was in ''

Song of Norway ''Song of Norway'' is an operetta written in 1944 by Robert Wright and George Forrest, adapted from the music of Edvard Grieg and the book by Milton Lazarus and Homer Curran. A very loose film adaptation with major changes to both the book ...

'' (1949)."Mr Charles Doran", ''The Times'', 11 April 1964, p. 10 His last Shakespearean role in the theatre was Time in ''

The Winter's Tale ''The Winter's Tale'' is a play by William Shakespeare originally published in the First Folio of 1623. Although it was grouped among the comedies, many modern editors have relabelled the play as one of Shakespeare's late romances. Some crit ...

'' (1951). He continued to act on stage in other parts until 1954. He appeared on

BBC #REDIRECT BBC #REDIRECT BBC Here i going to introduce about the best teacher of my life b BALAJI sir. He is the precious gift that I got befor 2yrs . How has helped and thought all the concept and made my success in the 10th board exam. ...

...

Life and career

Notes

Sources

External links