Myra Kemble (17 November 1857 – 27 October 1906) was an Australian stage actress.

Life

Early life and career

Myra Kemble was born on 17 November 1857 in

Sligo Sligo ( ; , meaning 'abounding in shells') is a coastal seaport and the county town of County Sligo, Ireland, within the western province of Connacht. With a population of 20,608 in 2022, it is the county's largest urban centre (constituting 2 ...

, Ireland, to Pritchard and Teresa Joseph Gill . She emigrated to the

Colony of Victoria The Colony of Victoria was a historical administrative division in Australia that existed from 1851 until 1901, when it federated with other colonies to form the Commonwealth of Australia. Situated in the southeastern corner of the Australian ...

when she was seven, and was educated at Geelong Convent School. In 1874, Kemble made her stage debut as

Venus Venus is the second planet from the Sun. It is often called Earth's "twin" or "sister" planet for having almost the same size and mass, and the closest orbit to Earth's. While both are rocky planets, Venus has an atmosphere much thicker ...

in a

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 ...

at the

Theatre Royal, Melbourne The Theatre Royal was one of the premier theatres for nearly 80 years in the city of Melbourne, Victoria, Australia, from 1855 to 1932. It was located at what is now 236 Bourke Street, once the heart of the city's theatre and entertainment distri ...

titled ''Twinkle Twinkle Little Star''. For some years she held the place of "leading lady" in various companies, and has been equally a favourite in all the cities of Australia and New Zealand. Kemble's onstage debut was in around 1872–1873 at the Old Queen's Theatre in Sydney. On 10 December 1878 Kemble married Mr James H. White (known as 'Eyeglass White'), a Sydney bookmaker, at St Mary's Cathedral in Sydney (following on from the earlier registration of their marriage at a registry office in Melbourne). In 1890 Miss Kemble paid her first visit to England, when she purchased the colonial "rights" of ''Dr. Bill'', by

Charles Hamilton Aide Charles Hamilton Aide (sometimes written as Aidé or Aïdé; 4 November 1826 – 13 December 1906) was "for many years a conspicuous figure in London literary society, a writer of novels, songs and dramas of considerable merit and popularity, and ...

, and other pieces. During her sojourn in London, Mr. Robert Buchanan wrote the play ''Man and the Woman'' especially for the popular colonial actress, who produced it at a ''matinée'' at the Criterion, where, however, despite excellent acting, it did not prove successful. After Miss Kemble's return to

Sydney Sydney is the capital city of the States and territories of Australia, state of New South Wales and the List of cities in Australia by population, most populous city in Australia. Located on Australia's east coast, the metropolis surrounds Syd ...

she made a brilliant reappearance at the Criterion Theatre in that city in ''Dr. Bill'', and she toured the various colonies. Kemble died in

Melbourne Melbourne ( , ; Boonwurrung language, Boonwurrung/ or ) is the List of Australian capital cities, capital and List of cities in Australia by population, most populous city of the States and territories of Australia, Australian state of Victori ...

, Victoria, Australia, on 27 October 1906.

Select theatre credits

*''New Magdalen'' *''Queen Mary'' *''Uncle Tom's Cabin'' *'' Pygmalion and Galatea'' *''

Hamlet ''The Tragedy of Hamlet, Prince of Denmark'', often shortened to ''Hamlet'' (), is a Shakespearean tragedy, tragedy written by William Shakespeare sometime between 1599 and 1601. It is Shakespeare's longest play. Set in Denmark, the play (the ...

'' (1877) *''

King Lear ''The Tragedy of King Lear'', often shortened to ''King Lear'', is a Shakespearean tragedy, tragedy written by William Shakespeare. It is loosely based on the mythological Leir of Britain. King Lear, in preparation for his old age, divides his ...

'' (1877) *''The Woman in White'' (1878) *''

Arrah-na-Pogue ''Arrah-na-Pogue'', also known as ''Arrah-na-Pogue; or the Wicklow Wedding'', is a play in 3 acts by Dion Boucicault. Along with ''The Colleen Bawn'' (1860) and ''The Shaughraun'' (1874), it is considered one of the three major Irish plays penn ...

'' (1878, 1880) *''

The Heir at Law ''The Heir at Law'' (1797) is a comedic play in five acts by George Colman the Younger that remained popular through the 19th century. It and ''John Bull'' (1803) were Colman's best known comedies.Dabundo, Laura (ed.Encyclopedia of Romanticis ...

'' *''In Chancery'' *''Hans, the Boatman'' *''East Lynne'' (1880) *''The New Babylon'' (1880) *''Youth'' (1885) *''Sophia'' (1888, 1889) *''Dr Bill'' (1890, 1891) *''Moths''

External links

Images of Myra Kemble
at

State Library Victoria State Library Victoria (SLV) is the state library of Victoria, Australia. Located in Melbourne, it was established in 1854 as the Melbourne Public Library, making it Australia's oldest public library and one of the first free libraries in th ...

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Kemble, Myra 1857 births 1906 deaths British emigrants to the Colony of Victoria Actresses from Melbourne 19th-century Australian actresses 20th-century Australian actresses People from Sligo (town) Actors from County Sligo