Kitty Loftus (16 June 1867 – 17 March 1927) was an English dancer, singer and

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 ...

. A leading

soubrette A soubrette is a female minor stock character in opera and theatre, often a pert lady's maid. By extension, the term can refer generally to any saucy or flirtatious young woman. The term arrived in English from Provençal via French, and means " ...

of the 1890s and 1900s in comedies,

burlesque A burlesque is a literary, dramatic or musical work intended to cause laughter by caricaturing the manner or spirit of serious works, or by ludicrous treatment of their subjects.

pantomime Pantomime (; informally panto) is a type of musical comedy stage production designed for family entertainment, generally combining gender-crossing actors and topical humour with a story more or less based on a well-known fairy tale, fable or ...

and musical plays, at the height of her career she performed with her Kitty Loftus Company. One critic praised her as "a tricky sprite and a fantastic elf." In her last years, she performed in

variety Variety may refer to: Arts and entertainment Entertainment formats * Variety (radio) * Variety show, in theater and television Films * ''Variety'' (1925 film), a German silent film directed by Ewald Andre Dupont * ''Variety'' (1935 film), ...

music hall Music hall is a type of British theatrical entertainment that was most popular from the early Victorian era, beginning around 1850, through the World War I, Great War. It faded away after 1918 as the halls rebranded their entertainment as Varie ...

s and on tour.

Early life and career

Catherine "Kitty" Newman was born in Whitecliffe in

Gloucestershire Gloucestershire ( , ; abbreviated Glos.) is a Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county in South West England. It is bordered by Herefordshire to the north-west, Worcestershire to the north, Warwickshire to the north-east, Oxfordshire ...

in 1867, one of four singing and dancing daughters born to the touring actor George Frederick Newman and his actress wife Mary. She was the sister of the actresses Rosie Loftus Leyton (Rose Newman, 1877–1902), Olive Loftus Leyton (Ada Newman, 1870–1936) and Mabel Luxmore (Lillian Newman, born 1866). The tiny, blonde Kitty Loftus began a stage career as a child in plays and in

before touring with the Milton-Rays. Gänzl, Kurt. ''The Encyclopedia of Musical Theatre'' (3 Volumes). New York: Schirmer Books, 2001 Kitty Loftus Brighton 1890

She made her stage début as Puck in ''

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

'' in 1879, quickly becoming a popular favourite in the British provinces playing leading

burlesque A burlesque is a literary, dramatic or musical work intended to cause laughter by caricaturing the manner or spirit of serious works, or by ludicrous treatment of their subjects.

roles in touring productions including ''Psyche in Venus'' (1890), Jack in ''

Little Jack Sheppard ''Little Jack Sheppard'' is a Victorian burlesque, burlesque melodrama written by Henry Pottinger Stephens and William Yardley (cricketer), William Yardley, with music by Meyer Lutz, with songs contributed by Florian Pascal,Florian Pascal was a p ...

'', Siebel in '' Faust up to Date'', and Cinderellen in ''

Cinder Ellen up too Late ''Cinder Ellen up too Late'' is a musical burlesque written by Frederick Hobson Leslie (writing under the pseudonym A. C. Torr) and W. T. Vincent, with music arranged by Meyer Lutz from compositions by Lionel Monckton, Sidney Jones, Walter Sl ...

''. During Christmas 1890 she played the title role in the pantomime ''Aladdin'' at the

Theatre Royal, Brighton The Theatre Royal is a theatre in Brighton, East Sussex, England presenting a range of West End and touring musicals and plays, along with performances of opera and ballet. History In 1806, the Prince of Wales (later George IV) gave Royal Assen ...

. She became a regular in the annual pantomime at

The Crystal Palace The Crystal Palace was a cast iron and plate glass structure, originally built in Hyde Park, London, to house the Great Exhibition of 1851. The exhibition took place from 1 May to 15 October 1851, and more than 14,000 exhibitors from around ...

, appearing in December 1891 as Aladdin and playing Jack Daw in ''The Babes in the Wood and Bold Robin Hood'' (1892). Of her performance in the latter, the critic of ''

The Sketch ''The Sketch'' was a British illustrated weekly journal. It ran for 2,989 issues between 1 February 1893 and 17 June 1959. It was published by the Illustrated London News, Illustrated London News Company and was primarily a society magazine wit ...

'' wrote of her:

This very talented and very charming actress ... once more … makes a distinctive mark and secures a bewitching triumph. Miss Kitty Loftus is, indeed, the fairy incarnation of the truest spirit of burlesque. She is a tricky sprite and a fantastic elf. She is an embodied lightness, instinct with the glad sparkle and effervescent gaiety of her peculiar branch of theatrical activity. She is daintily little, and yet exquisitely modelled, and her light foot dances as if dancing were the mere effusion of airy joy, expressed through merriment, but restrained by grace. ... Her voice is of no great compass or power; but she sings with so much expression as to bring out the full meaning of the words. ... Ambition may lurk beneath those careless curls, and the young lady, perhaps, secretly longs to ... turn from the dainty deliciousness of sparkling burlesque to gracious and coquettish comedy. ... Loftus is still so young that much may be hoped from the future career. ... Meanwhile, all may now make acquaintance, at the Crystal Palace, with her agile grace, her sportive lightness, and her quaint archness."Miss Kitty Loftus", ''
The Sketch ''The Sketch'' was a British illustrated weekly journal. It ran for 2,989 issues between 1 February 1893 and 17 June 1959. It was published by the Illustrated London News, Illustrated London News Company and was primarily a society magazine wit ...
'', 17 January 1894, p. 616

Peak career and later years

In 1893 Loftus created the title role of Phyllis in the touring production of the most successful of the early variety musical comedies, ''

The Lady Slavey ''The Lady Slavey'' was an 1894 operetta in two acts with a score by John Crook (with contributions by Henry Wood and Letty Lind, among others), to a libretto by George Dance (with additional lyrics by Adrian Ross, among others) which opened at ...

'', and in 1894 she was Eric in the pantomime ''Santa Claus'' at the Lyceum Theatre. Loftus appeared as Emma opposite Arthur Roberts in ''

Gentleman Joe ''Gentleman Joe, The Hansom Cabbie'' is a farcical musical comedy with music by Walter Slaughter and a libretto by Basil Hood. The original production of the musical opened at the Prince of Wales's Theatre on 2 March 1895 and ran for a very su ...

'' at the

Prince of Wales Theatre The Prince of Wales Theatre is a West End theatre in Coventry Street, near Leicester Square in London. It was established in 1884 and rebuilt in 1937, and extensively refurbished in 2004 by Sir Cameron Mackintosh, its current owner. The theatre ...

(1895), Janet in ''Biarritz'' (1896) and Mrs. Bailey in ''The White Silk Dress'' (1896). In early 1896 she was playing the title role in ''

Trilby A trilby is a narrow-brimmed type of hat. The trilby was once viewed as the rich man's favored hat; it is sometimes called the "brown trilby" in UK, BritainBernhard Roetzel, Roetzel, Bernhard (1999). ''Gentleman's Guide to Grooming and Style''. B ...

'' at the Prince of Wales. She starred as Dora Selwyn in the supposedly Armenian musical '' The Yashmak'' (1897) and appeared in ''The Swineherd and the Emperor's New Clothes'' at

Terry's Theatre Terry's Theatre was a West End theatre in the Strand, in the City of Westminster, London. Built in 1887, it became a cinema in 1910 before being demolished in 1923. History The theatre was built in 1887, near Fountain's Court, on the site of a ...

(1898). She was Princess Petula in ''Her Royal Highness'' by

Basil Hood Basil Willett Charles Hood (5 April 1864 – 7 August 1917) was a British dramatist and lyricist, perhaps best known for writing the libretti of half a dozen Savoy Operas and for his English adaptations of operettas, including ''The Merry Wi ...

and

Walter Slaughter Walter Alfred Slaughter (17 February 1860 – 2 March 1908) was an English conductor and composer of musical comedy, comic opera and children's shows. He was engaged in the West End as a composer and musical director from 1883 to 1904. Life a ...

at the

Vaudeville Theatre The Vaudeville Theatre is a West End theatre on the Strand in the City of Westminster. Opening in 1870, the theatre staged mostly vaudeville shows and musical revues in its early days. The theatre was rebuilt twice, although each new buildin ...

(1898), played the Maid-Servant in ''A Good Time'' at the

Opera Comique The Opera Comique was a 19th-century theatre constructed in Westminster, London, located between Wych Street, Holywell Street and the Strand. It opened in 1870 and was demolished in 1902, to make way for the construction of the Aldwych and K ...

(1899) and was a replacement player in the title role of ''The French Maid'' at the

(1898). She made her first appearance in America as Denise in the musical ''In Gay Paree'' at the New York Theatre (1899). Back in England, she played Harriet in ''Shock-Headed Peter'' at the

Garrick Theatre The Garrick Theatre is a West End theatre, located in Charing Cross Road, in the City of Westminster, named after the stage actor David Garrick. It opened in 1889 with ''The Profligate'', a play by Arthur Wing Pinero, and another Pinero play, ...

(1900), Lucy in ''

The Rivals ''The Rivals'' is a comedy of manners by Richard Brinsley Sheridan in five acts which was first performed at Covent Garden Theatre on 17 January 1775. The story has been updated frequently, including a 1935 musical and a 1958 List of Maverick ...

'' at the

Haymarket Theatre The Theatre Royal Haymarket (also known as Haymarket Theatre or the Little Theatre) is a West End theatre in Haymarket, London, Haymarket in the City of Westminster which dates back to 1720, making it the third-oldest London playhouse still in ...

(1900), and the title role on tour in ''English Nell'' in 1901. She went to court to make a legal challenge against her old partner Arthur Roberts when he dropped her as co-star for his West End season of ''HMS Irresponsible'' (1900) after the pre-London tour in favour of

Kate Cutler Kate Ellen Louisa Cutler (14 August 1864 – 14 May 1955) was an English singer and actress, known in the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries as an ''ingenue (stock character), ingénue'' in Edwardian musical comedy, musical comedies, ...

; on losing the case she played in Shakespeare with Frank Benson, and appeared as Maude Sportington in a revival of ''

Morocco Bound ''Morocco Bound'' is a farce, farcical Edwardian musical comedy in two acts by Arthur Branscombe, with music by F. Osmond Carr and lyrics by Adrian Ross. It opened at the Shaftesbury Theatre in London, on 13 April 1893, under the management of Fr ...

'' (1901) and in the title role of the musical comedy ''Bébé'' (1901). She produced and starred in the musical comedy ''Naughty Nancy'' at the

Savoy Theatre The Savoy Theatre is a West End theatre in the Strand in the City of Westminster, London, England. The theatre was designed by C. J. Phipps for Richard D'Oyly Carte and opened on 10 October 1881 on a site previously occupied by the Savoy ...

(1902), was Margery Goring in her own production of the three-act comedy ''A Maid from School'' at

(1904), and played the title role in her own production of the burlesque ''The Duchess of Silliecrankie'' (1904), again at Terry's Theatre. Loftus was in the pantomime at the

London Pavilion The London Pavilion is a building on the corner of Shaftesbury Avenue and Coventry Street on the north-east side of Piccadilly Circus in London. It is currently a shopping arcade and part of the Trocadero Centre. Early history The first buil ...

from December 1905. In 1906 she made a tour of South Africa with

George Robey Sir George Edward Wade, Commander of the Order of the British Empire, CBE (20 September 1869 – 29 November 1954),James Harding (music writer), Harding, James"Robey, George" ''Oxford Dictionary of National Biography'', Oxford University P ...

. The latter part of her career was spent in

, with Loftus appearing in

s such as the Holborn Empire in 1908, at the

London Coliseum The London Coliseum (also known as the Coliseum Theatre) is a theatre in St Martin's Lane, City of Westminster, Westminster, built as one of London's largest and most luxurious "family" variety theatres. Opened on 24 December 1904 as the Lond ...

and touring the provinces. From 1910 to 1911 she was in ''

The Critic ''The Critic'' is an American Adult animation, adult animated sitcom revolving around the life of New York film critic Jay Sherman, voiced by Jon Lovitz. It was created by writing partners Al Jean and Mike Reiss, who had previously worked as w ...

'' at

Her Majesty's Theatre His Majesty's Theatre is a West End theatre situated in the Haymarket, London, Haymarket in the City of Westminster, London. The building, designed by Charles J. Phipps, was constructed in 1897 for the actor-manager Herbert Beerbohm Tree, who ...

.Kitty Loftus
Theatricalia, accessed 20 April 2020

Personal life

She married the theatrical manager William Phillips Warren-Smith (1872–1927) in 1907. From at least 1911 to 1925 the couple were living in

Marylebone Marylebone (usually , also ) is an area in London, England, and is located in the City of Westminster. It is in Central London and part of the West End. Oxford Street forms its southern boundary. An ancient parish and latterly a metropo ...

in London. Loftus died at her home in

St John's Wood St John's Wood is a district in the London Borough of Camden, London Boroughs of Camden and the City of Westminster, London, England, about 2.5 miles (4 km) northwest of Charing Cross. Historically the northern part of the Civil Parish#An ...

in London in 1927 having caught influenza some six weeks before. In her will she left £847 6s 10d to her husband.England & Wales, National Probate Calendar (Index of Wills and Administrations), 1858-1995 for Catherine Warren Smith (1927)
Ancestry.com

References

Sources

*Adams, William Davenport. ''A Dictionary of the Drama'', vol. 1, Chatto & Windus, 1904 {{DEFAULTSORT:Loftus, Kitty 1867 births 1927 deaths 19th-century English actresses English stage actresses British musical theatre actresses Soubrettes Victorian era Actor-managers