Elizabeth O'Neill (1791 – 29 October 1872), also Eliza, was an Irish actress.

Biography

Born in

Drogheda Drogheda ( , ; , meaning "bridge at the ford") is an industrial and port town in County Louth on the east coast of Ireland, north of Dublin. It is located on the Dublin–Belfast corridor on the east coast of Ireland, mostly in County Louth ...

, 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 ...

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 Juliet Capulet () is the female protagonist in William Shakespeare's romantic tragedy ''Romeo and Juliet''. A 13-year-old girl, Juliet is the only daughter of the patriarch of the House of Capulet. She falls in love with the male protagonist Ro ...

Covent Garden Covent Garden is a district in London, on the eastern fringes of the West End, between St Martin's Lane and Drury Lane. It is associated with the former fruit-and-vegetable market in the central square, now a popular shopping and tourist sit ...

in 1814. For five years she was the favourite 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 Tragedy, tragedienne of the 18th century. Contemporaneous critic William Hazlitt dubbed Siddons as "tragedy personified". She was the elder siste ...

. 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 14th ...

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

Selected roles

*Adelaide in ''

Adelaide Adelaide ( , ; ) is the list of Australian capital cities, capital and most populous city of South Australia, as well as the list of cities in Australia by population, fifth-most populous city in Australia. The name "Adelaide" may refer to ei ...

'' by Richard Sheil (1814) * Juliet in ''

Romeo and Juliet ''The Tragedy of Romeo and Juliet'', often shortened to ''Romeo and Juliet'', is a Shakespearean tragedy, tragedy written by William Shakespeare about the romance between two young Italians from feuding families. It was among Shakespeare's ...

'' by

William Shakespeare William Shakespeare ( 23 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 ...

(1814) * Adelgitha in '' Adelgitha'' by Matthew Lewis (1817) * Florinda in '' The Apostate'' by Richard Sheil (1817) * Zimra in ''

Retribution Retribution may refer to: * Punishment * Retributive justice, a theory of justice ** Divine retribution, retributive justice in a religious context * Revenge, a harmful action against a person or group in response to a grievance Film and televis ...

'' by John Dillon (1818) * Bellamira in ''

Bellamira ''Bellamira'' is a genus of flower longhorns in the beetle family Cerambycidae The longhorn beetles (Cerambycidae), also known as long-horned or longicorns (whose larvae are often referred to as roundheaded borers), are a large family of beetl ...

'' 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 fiction, Gothic plays and novels.Chris Morgan, "Maturin, C ...

(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. *Eva ...

'' 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 Actresses from County Louth

Biography

Selected roles

See also

References

Further reading

External links