Elizabeth O'Neill (179129 October 1872), also Eliza, was an Irish actress.

Biography

Study for Miss O'Neill as Juliet (Dawe, c

Born in Drogheda, she was the daughter of an actor and stage manager. Her first appearance on the stage was made at the

Crow Street Theatre Crow Street Theatre was a theatre in Dublin, Ireland, originally opened in 1758 by the actor Spranger Barry. From 1788 until 1818 it was a patent theatre. History Spranger Barry and Henry Woodward The actor Spranger Barry (1719–1777), born i ...

in 1811 as the Widow Cheerly in Andrew Cherry's ''The Soldier's Daughter'', and after several years in Ireland she came to London and made an immediate success as Juliet at Covent Garden in 1814. For five years she was the favorite of London town in comedy as well as tragedy, but in the latter she particularly excelled, being frequently compared, not to her disadvantage, with the great

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 Joh ...

. In 1819 she married William Wrixon Becher of Ballygiblin CastleGrant's Old and New Edinburgh vol.2 p.347 , an Irish M.P., who was to be created a

baronet A baronet ( or ; abbreviated Bart or Bt) or the female equivalent, a baronetess (, , or ; abbreviation Btss), is the holder of a baronetcy, a hereditary title awarded by the British Crown. The title of baronet is mentioned as early as the 14t ...

in 1831. After her marriage, she never returned to the stage.

Selected roles

*Adelaide in ''

Adelaide Adelaide ( ) is the capital city of South Australia, the state's largest city and the fifth-most populous city in Australia. "Adelaide" may refer to either Greater Adelaide (including the Adelaide Hills) or the Adelaide city centre. The dem ...

'' by Richard Sheil (1814) * Adelgitha in '' Adelgitha'' by Matthew Lewis (1817) * Florinda in '' The Apostate'' by Richard Sheil (1817) * Zimra in '' Retribution'' by John Dillon (1818) * Bellamira in '' Bellamira'' by Richard Sheil (1818) * Urilda in '' Fredolfo'' by

Charles Maturin Charles Robert Maturin, also known as C. R. Maturin (25 September 1780 – 30 October 1824), was an Irish Protestant clergyman (ordained in the Church of Ireland) and a writer of Gothic plays and novels.Chris Morgan, "Maturin, Charles R(obert) ...

(1819) * Evadne in ''

Evadne In Greek mythology, Evadne (; Ancient Greek: Εὐάδνη) was a name attributed to the following individuals: *Evadne, a daughter of Strymon and Neaera, wife of Argus (king of Argos), mother of Ecbasus, Peiras, Epidaurus and Criasus. *Evadn ...

'' by Richard Sheil (1819)

References

External links

Eliza O'Neill
in ''Actors and Actresses of Great Britain and the United States'', Volume 2, edited by Brander Matthews, Laurence Hutton
Eliza O'Neill
in ''Bow Bells'', by J. Dicks
Eliza O'Neill
in ''The Autographic Mirror'', Volume 3
Beecher, Lady Wrixon nee Eliza O'Neill
in ''Appletons' Annual Cyclopaedia and Register of Important Events: Embracing ...''
Miss O'Neill (Lady Wrixon Beecher)
in ''Illustrious Irishwomen: Being Memoirs of Some of the Most Noted ...'', Volume 1, by Elizabeth Casey
Eliza O'Neill
at historyswomen.com {{DEFAULTSORT:Oneill, Eliza Irish stage actresses 1791 births 1872 deaths 19th-century Irish actresses People from Drogheda Wives of baronets Women of the Regency era

Biography

Selected roles

See also

References

Further reading

External links