Henrietta Amelia Leeson (1751 – 6 December 1826) was an English actress of the 18th-century. Known as Mrs Lewis after her marriage to the actor

William Thomas Lewis William Thomas Lewis (c.1748–1811), known as "Gentleman" Lewis, due to his refined acting style, was an English actor. Raised in Kingdom of Ireland, Ireland, he made his name on the Dublin stage before moving to the Theatre Royal, Covent Gard ...

In 1780, she appeared regularly with him at the

Theatre Royal, Drury Lane The Theatre Royal, Drury Lane, commonly known as Drury Lane, is a West End theatre and listed building, Grade I listed building in Covent Garden, London, England. The building faces Catherine Street (earlier named Bridges or Brydges Street) an ...

. She made over 100 appearances on the London stage between 1775 and 1791. Born in London, Leeson developed an early interest in the theatre through the encouragement and support of her friends exacerbated by the frequent absence of her father from the family home owing to the long hours he worked in his printer's business. The Irish actor

Charles Macklin Charles Macklin (26 September 1699 – 11 July 1797), (Gaelic: Cathal MacLochlainn, English: Charles McLaughlin), was an Irish actor and dramatist who performed extensively at the Theatre Royal, Drury Lane. Macklin revolutionised theatre in ...

took her on as an apprentice and in 1771 she accompanied him to

Ireland Ireland (, ; ; Ulster Scots dialect, Ulster-Scots: ) is an island in the North Atlantic Ocean, in Northwestern Europe. Geopolitically, the island is divided between the Republic of Ireland (officially Names of the Irish state, named Irelan ...

where she made her début 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 ...

Dublin Dublin is the capital and largest city of Republic of Ireland, Ireland. Situated on Dublin Bay at the mouth of the River Liffey, it is in the Provinces of Ireland, province of Leinster, and is bordered on the south by the Dublin Mountains, pa ...

. Leeson played a number of roles on her tour of Ireland with Macklin's company including

Portia Portia may refer to: Biology * ''Portia'' (spider), a genus of jumping spiders *Portia tree, a plant native to Polynesia *''Anaea troglodyta'' or Portia, a brush-footed butterfly Other uses *Portia (given name), the history and usage of the give ...

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 taken out on behalf of his dear friend, Bassanio, and provided by a ...

'' and

Desdemona Desdemona () is a character in William Shakespeare's play ''Othello'' (c. 1601–1604). Shakespeare's Desdemona is a Venice, Italy, Venetian beauty who enrages and disappoints her father, a Venetian senator, when she elopes with Othello (char ...

in ''

Othello ''The Tragedy of Othello, the Moor of Venice'', often shortened to ''Othello'' (), is a tragedy written by William Shakespeare around 1603. Set in Venice and Cyprus, the play depicts the Moorish military commander Othello as he is manipulat ...

''. On their return to Dublin Leeson continued to act in Macklin's company but he had become "deeply but fruitlessly infatuated with her" and he released her from her apprenticeship, following which she joined the Dawson Company at the

Capel Street Theatre Capel Street Theatre was an 18th-century theatre located on Capel Street in Dublin, Ireland. The Capel Street Theatre had two distinct periods in its history. The first theatre on the site was called the 'New Theatre in Capel Street' or 'City ...

. She began to live with the actor William Thomas Lewis and went with him to England in 1775 where they married in about 1780. She appeared with Lewis at the

, at first as Mrs Leeson and later as Mrs Lewis. She joined her husband on his tours of the provinces.Roland Metcal
William Thomas Lewis
-

Oxford Dictionary of National Biography The ''Dictionary of National Biography'' (''DNB'') is a standard work of reference on notable figures from History of the British Isles, British history, published since 1885. The updated ''Oxford Dictionary of National Biography'' (''ODNB'') ...

(2012) The quality of her acting was debated:

Joseph Haslewood Joseph Haslewood (5 November 1769 – 21 September 1833) was an English writer and antiquary. He was a founder of the Roxburghe Club. Life Haslewood was born in London, the son of Richard Haslewood and his wife Mary Dewsberry.Francis Haslewood Th ...

claimed her occasional appearances on the London stage (103 appearances between 1775 and 1791) were largely owing to her wanting to provide for her large family rather than through a desire to display her talent. However, another critic said of her first appearance at Covent Garden that 'there was an ease and nature in her deportment and dialogue that entitles her to encouragement', while

Tate Wilkinson Tate Wilkinson (27 October 173916 November 1803) was an English actor and manager. 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 h ...

described her as 'an amiable handsome woman, and a pleasing actress'.

, ''The wandering patentee, or, A history of the Yorkshire theatres from 1770 to the present time'', 4 vols. (1795) With her husband she had five sons and three daughters: Harry Lewis (1780-); Thomas Lewis (1782-); Edward George Lewis (1783–); Henry Lewis (1784-); Rosa Frances Lewis (1784–1862); Thomas Denison Lewis (1787–1849); Henrietta Lenthal Lewis (1788–1842), and Frances Lewis (1789–1809). Her son Henry appeared at Covent Garden and played a few parts, with little success. He was then on the Dublin stage. In her later years Leeson lived in

Liverpool Liverpool is a port City status in the United Kingdom, city and metropolitan borough in Merseyside, England. It is situated on the eastern side of the River Mersey, Mersey Estuary, near the Irish Sea, north-west of London. With a population ...

and here she died on 6 December 1826 aged 75.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Leeson, Henrietta Amelia 1751 births 1826 deaths Actresses from London British Shakespearean actresses 18th-century English actresses English stage actresses English Shakespearean actresses