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Richard Mansfield

January 01, 1970

For the cricketer, see Richard Mansfield (cricketer).

Richard Mansfield (24 May 1857 – 30 August 1907) was an English actor-manager best known for his performances in Shakespeare plays, Gilbert and Sullivan operas, and the play Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde.

Richard Mansfield

Life and career edit

Mansfield was born in Berlin and spent his early childhood on Heligoland, Germany, an island in the North Sea, then under British rule. His parents were Hermine Küchenmeister-Rudersdorf, a Russian-born operatic soprano, and Maurice Mansfield, a British London-based wine merchant (died 1861). His grandfather was the violinist Joseph Rudersdorff.[1][2] Mansfield was educated at Derby School, in Derby, England, where he studied painting in London. His mother took him to America, where she was performing, but he returned to England at age 20. Finding that he could not make a living as a painter, he gained some success as a drawing-room entertainer, eventually moving into acting.[3]

Early career, D'Oyly Carte and first London successes edit

 
Mansfield was well known in the dual roles of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde

He first appeared on the stage at St. George's Hall, London, in the German Reed Entertainments and then turned to light opera, joining Richard D'Oyly Carte's Comedy Opera Company in 1879 to appear as Sir Joseph Porter in H.M.S. Pinafore on tour. He continued to play the Gilbert and Sullivan comic "patter" roles on tour in Britain until 1881. Mansfield created the role of Major General Stanley in the single copyright performance of The Pirates of Penzance in Paignton, England, in 1879. In addition to Sir Joseph and the Major General, in 1880 he also began to play John Wellington Wells in The Sorcerer.[3]

He left the D'Oyly Carte company in 1881, returned to London, and soon made his London debut in Jacques Offenbach's La boulangère. He played several further roles in London and then travelled to America in 1882, where he made his Broadway debut as Dromez in Bucalossi's Les Manteaux Noirs with a D'Oyly Carte touring company. He then played the roles of Nick Vedder and Jan Vedder in another D'Oyly Carte production, Robert Planquette's Rip Van Winkle (1882).[3]

Mansfield then appeared in Baltimore, Maryland, with another D'Oyly Carte troupe, as the Lord Chancellor in Gilbert and Sullivan's Iolanthe in December 1882. He suffered a bad ankle sprain only two days later, however, and left the production, returning to New York. In 1883 he joined A. M. Palmer's Union Square theatre company in New York, and made a hit as Baron Chevrial in A Parisian Romance. Mansfield's portrayal of Chevrial, a "realistic exhibition of depravity in dotage, by a young and comparatively unknown actor, was a surprise to the public, the managers, and the critics, and soon became a town topic."[1] He next played the role of Ko-Ko, the Lord High Executioner in The Mikado, in Boston in early 1886, his last production with a D'Oyly Carte cast.[3]

He appeared successfully in an original play, Prince Karl, and in several plays adapted from well-known stories, and his 1887 rendering of the title-characters in Thomas Russell Sullivan's Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde for Palmer's company at Madison Square Theatre, only a year after publication of Robert Louis Stevenson's novella, created a profound impression.[4] It was with this play that he made his London reputation during the 1888 season at the Lyceum Theatre, by invitation of Henry Irving. He also reprised the role in Broadway revivals.[5]

Actor-producer edit

 
Mansfield as English king Richard III, c. 1889

Mansfield continued his acting career but had also begun a career as a theatrical manager in America in 1886. He produced the play Richard III in 1889 at the Globe Theatre. He was back on Broadway in 1890 in Beau Brummell (he reprised this role several times).[6] He was one of the earliest to produce George Bernard Shaw's plays in America, appearing in 1894 as Bluntschli in Arms and the Man, and as Dick Dudgeon in The Devil's Disciple in 1897. The latter production was the first Shaw production to turn a profit. As a manager and producer of plays, Mansfield was known for his lavish staging. He often produced, starred in (often opposite his wife), and directed plays on Broadway, sometimes also writing under the pseudonym Meridan Phelps. His other Broadway roles in the 1890s included Napoleon Bonaparte (1894), the title role in The Story of Rodion, the Student (1895), Sir John Sombras in Castle Sombras (1896), Eugen Courvoisier in The First Violin (1898 and 1988), the title role in Cyrano de Bergerac (1898 and 1899).[5]

He began the new century on Broadway in the title role in King Henry V (1900), followed by the title character in Monsieur Beaucaire, Brutus in Julius Caesar (1902), Karl Heinrich in Old Heidelberg (1903 and 1904), and roles in Ivan the Terrible (1904), A Parisian Romance (1904 and 1905), The Merchant of Venice (1905), Richard III (1905), Alceste in The Misanthrope (1905), The Scarlet Letter (1906) and Don Carlos (1906), among others. He continued to perform until his final year. One of his last performances, just a few months before his death, was the title role in a Broadway production of Henrik Ibsen's Peer Gynt, the play's U.S. premiere.[5]

Mansfield's popularity as a Shakespearean actor was immense. Upon his death, The New York Times stated: "As an interpreter of Shakespeare, he had no living equal in his later days, as witnessed by the princely grace, the tragic force of his Richard, his thrilling acting in the tent scene of "Caesar", the soldierly dignity and eloquence of his Prince Hal, and the pathos of the prayer in that play. He was the greatest actor of his hour, and one of the greatest of all times."[3]

Mansfield died in New London, Connecticut, in 1907 at age 50, from liver cancer.[5]

Suspected in Jack the Ripper case edit

 
Mansfield lecturing in St. Louis in 1906; illustration by Marguerite Martyn

Mansfield was performing in the London production of the Strange Case of Dr Jekyll and Mr Hyde in 1888 during the time that Jack the Ripper was murdering women in London. One frightened theatre-goer wrote to the police accusing Mansfield of the murders because he could not believe that any actor could make so convincing a stage transformation from a gentleman into a mad killer without being homicidal. Mansfield attempted to gain public favour and stem the criticism that he was receiving by offering a performance of the comedy Prince Karl for the benefit of the Suffragan Bishop of London's home and refuge fund for reformed prostitutes.[7]

Family life edit

Mansfield was married in 1892 to Beatrice Cameron (1868–1940),[8] an actress.[9] After their wedding, she was often referred to as Mrs Richard Mansfield by the press. In 1898 the couple had their only child, Richard Gibbs Mansfield (1898–1918). The younger Mansfield was an ambulance driver in France early during World War I, eagerly enlisting while underage (with his mother's consent). When America entered the war, he joined the U.S. Army and went to Texas to be part of an aviation unit. There he contracted meningitis and died in 1918.[10] After the war, Mansfield's wife worked with refugees from the Armenian genocide in Turkey and Palestine.[11]

Notes edit

  1. ^ a b Turney, Wayne S. "Richard Mansfield" 5 April 2005 at the Wayback Machine, A Glimpse of Theater History, accessed 20 May 2012
  2. ^ "Erminia Rudersdorff (1822–1882)" 6 July 2008 at the Wayback Machine, Picture History, accessed 24 June 2014; and Winter, pp. 349 et seq.
  3. ^ a b c d e Stone, David. "Richard Mansfield", Who Was Who in the D'Oyly Carte Opera Company, 27 August 2001, 20 May 2012
  4. ^ Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde, IBDB, accessed 20 May 2012
  5. ^ a b c d "Meridan Phelps (Also known as Richard Mansfield)", accessed 20 May 2012
  6. ^ Beau Brummell, IBDB, accessed 20 May 2012
  7. ^ Morley, Christopher J. Jack the Ripper: A Suspect Guide (2005)
  8. ^ Who's Who in New England by Albert Nelson Marquis, c. 1915, p. 719
  9. ^ Beatrice Cameron NYP Library
  10. ^ "Richard Mansfield Dies in Texas Camp", The New York Times, 5 April 1918, p. 15
  11. ^ "Shakespeare in Lieu of Stew", New Near East, November 1920, pp. 23–24

References edit

  •   This article incorporates text from a publication now in the public domain: Chisholm, Hugh, ed. (1911). "Mansfield, Richard". Encyclopædia Britannica. Vol. 17 (11th ed.). Cambridge University Press. p. 600.
  • Wilstach, Paul. Richard Mansfield: The Man and the Actor (New York, Scribner's, 1908)
  • Winter, William. The Life and Art of Richard Mansfield, 2 vols. (New York, Moffit, Yard & Co., 1910)

External links edit

 
Wikimedia Commons has media related to Richard Mansfield.

January 01, 1970
richard, mansfield, cricketer, cricketer, 1857, august, 1907, english, actor, manager, best, known, performances, shakespeare, plays, gilbert, sullivan, operas, play, jekyll, hyde, contents, life, career, early, career, oyly, carte, first, london, successes, a. For the cricketer see Richard Mansfield cricketer Richard Mansfield 24 May 1857 30 August 1907 was an English actor manager best known for his performances in Shakespeare plays Gilbert and Sullivan operas and the play Dr Jekyll and Mr Hyde Richard Mansfield Contents 1 Life and career 1 1 Early career D Oyly Carte and first London successes 1 2 Actor producer 1 3 Suspected in Jack the Ripper case 2 Family life 3 Notes 4 References 5 External linksLife and career editMansfield was born in Berlin and spent his early childhood on Heligoland Germany an island in the North Sea then under British rule His parents were Hermine Kuchenmeister Rudersdorf a Russian born operatic soprano and Maurice Mansfield a British London based wine merchant died 1861 His grandfather was the violinist Joseph Rudersdorff 1 2 Mansfield was educated at Derby School in Derby England where he studied painting in London His mother took him to America where she was performing but he returned to England at age 20 Finding that he could not make a living as a painter he gained some success as a drawing room entertainer eventually moving into acting 3 Early career D Oyly Carte and first London successes edit nbsp Mansfield was well known in the dual roles of Dr Jekyll and Mr Hyde He first appeared on the stage at St George s Hall London in the German Reed Entertainments and then turned to light opera joining Richard D Oyly Carte s Comedy Opera Company in 1879 to appear as Sir Joseph Porter in H M S Pinafore on tour He continued to play the Gilbert and Sullivan comic patter roles on tour in Britain until 1881 Mansfield created the role of Major General Stanley in the single copyright performance of The Pirates of Penzance in Paignton England in 1879 In addition to Sir Joseph and the Major General in 1880 he also began to play John Wellington Wells in The Sorcerer 3 He left the D Oyly Carte company in 1881 returned to London and soon made his London debut in Jacques Offenbach s La boulangere He played several further roles in London and then travelled to America in 1882 where he made his Broadway debut as Dromez in Bucalossi s Les Manteaux Noirs with a D Oyly Carte touring company He then played the roles of Nick Vedder and Jan Vedder in another D Oyly Carte production Robert Planquette s Rip Van Winkle 1882 3 Mansfield then appeared in Baltimore Maryland with another D Oyly Carte troupe as the Lord Chancellor in Gilbert and Sullivan s Iolanthe in December 1882 He suffered a bad ankle sprain only two days later however and left the production returning to New York In 1883 he joined A M Palmer s Union Square theatre company in New York and made a hit as Baron Chevrial in A Parisian Romance Mansfield s portrayal of Chevrial a realistic exhibition of depravity in dotage by a young and comparatively unknown actor was a surprise to the public the managers and the critics and soon became a town topic 1 He next played the role of Ko Ko the Lord High Executioner in The Mikado in Boston in early 1886 his last production with a D Oyly Carte cast 3 He appeared successfully in an original play Prince Karl and in several plays adapted from well known stories and his 1887 rendering of the title characters in Thomas Russell Sullivan s Dr Jekyll and Mr Hyde for Palmer s company at Madison Square Theatre only a year after publication of Robert Louis Stevenson s novella created a profound impression 4 It was with this play that he made his London reputation during the 1888 season at the Lyceum Theatre by invitation of Henry Irving He also reprised the role in Broadway revivals 5 Actor producer edit nbsp Mansfield as English king Richard III c 1889 Mansfield continued his acting career but had also begun a career as a theatrical manager in America in 1886 He produced the play Richard III in 1889 at the Globe Theatre He was back on Broadway in 1890 in Beau Brummell he reprised this role several times 6 He was one of the earliest to produce George Bernard Shaw s plays in America appearing in 1894 as Bluntschli in Arms and the Man and as Dick Dudgeon in The Devil s Disciple in 1897 The latter production was the first Shaw production to turn a profit As a manager and producer of plays Mansfield was known for his lavish staging He often produced starred in often opposite his wife and directed plays on Broadway sometimes also writing under the pseudonym Meridan Phelps His other Broadway roles in the 1890s included Napoleon Bonaparte 1894 the title role in The Story of Rodion the Student 1895 Sir John Sombras in Castle Sombras 1896 Eugen Courvoisier in The First Violin 1898 and 1988 the title role in Cyrano de Bergerac 1898 and 1899 5 He began the new century on Broadway in the title role in King Henry V 1900 followed by the title character in Monsieur Beaucaire Brutus in Julius Caesar 1902 Karl Heinrich in Old Heidelberg 1903 and 1904 and roles in Ivan the Terrible 1904 A Parisian Romance 1904 and 1905 The Merchant of Venice 1905 Richard III 1905 Alceste in The Misanthrope 1905 The Scarlet Letter 1906 and Don Carlos 1906 among others He continued to perform until his final year One of his last performances just a few months before his death was the title role in a Broadway production of Henrik Ibsen s Peer Gynt the play s U S premiere 5 Mansfield s popularity as a Shakespearean actor was immense Upon his death The New York Times stated As an interpreter of Shakespeare he had no living equal in his later days as witnessed by the princely grace the tragic force of his Richard his thrilling acting in the tent scene of Caesar the soldierly dignity and eloquence of his Prince Hal and the pathos of the prayer in that play He was the greatest actor of his hour and one of the greatest of all times 3 Mansfield died in New London Connecticut in 1907 at age 50 from liver cancer 5 Suspected in Jack the Ripper case edit nbsp Mansfield lecturing in St Louis in 1906 illustration by Marguerite Martyn Mansfield was performing in the London production of the Strange Case of Dr Jekyll and Mr Hyde in 1888 during the time that Jack the Ripper was murdering women in London One frightened theatre goer wrote to the police accusing Mansfield of the murders because he could not believe that any actor could make so convincing a stage transformation from a gentleman into a mad killer without being homicidal Mansfield attempted to gain public favour and stem the criticism that he was receiving by offering a performance of the comedy Prince Karl for the benefit of the Suffragan Bishop of London s home and refuge fund for reformed prostitutes 7 Family life editMansfield was married in 1892 to Beatrice Cameron 1868 1940 8 an actress 9 After their wedding she was often referred to as Mrs Richard Mansfield by the press In 1898 the couple had their only child Richard Gibbs Mansfield 1898 1918 The younger Mansfield was an ambulance driver in France early during World War I eagerly enlisting while underage with his mother s consent When America entered the war he joined the U S Army and went to Texas to be part of an aviation unit There he contracted meningitis and died in 1918 10 After the war Mansfield s wife worked with refugees from the Armenian genocide in Turkey and Palestine 11 Notes edit a b Turney Wayne S Richard Mansfield Archived 5 April 2005 at the Wayback Machine A Glimpse of Theater History accessed 20 May 2012 Erminia Rudersdorff 1822 1882 Archived 6 July 2008 at the Wayback Machine Picture History accessed 24 June 2014 and Winter pp 349 et seq a b c d e Stone David Richard Mansfield Who Was Who in the D Oyly Carte Opera Company 27 August 2001 20 May 2012 Dr Jekyll and Mr Hyde IBDB accessed 20 May 2012 a b c d Meridan Phelps Also known as Richard Mansfield accessed 20 May 2012 Beau Brummell IBDB accessed 20 May 2012 Morley Christopher J Jack the Ripper A Suspect Guide 2005 Who s Who in New England by Albert Nelson Marquis c 1915 p 719 Beatrice Cameron NYP Library Richard Mansfield Dies in Texas Camp The New York Times 5 April 1918 p 15 Shakespeare in Lieu of Stew New Near East November 1920 pp 23 24References edit nbsp This article incorporates text from a publication now in the public domain Chisholm Hugh ed 1911 Mansfield Richard Encyclopaedia Britannica Vol 17 11th ed Cambridge University Press p 600 Wilstach Paul Richard Mansfield The Man and the Actor New York Scribner s 1908 Winter William The Life and Art of Richard Mansfield 2 vols New York Moffit Yard amp Co 1910 External links edit nbsp Wikimedia Commons has media related to Richard Mansfield Richard Mansfield photo gallery at New York Public Library Richard Mansfield letters and ephemera circa 1891 held by the Billy Rose Theatre Division New York Public Library for the Performing Arts Richard Mansfield family papers 1856 1940 bulk 1905 1940 held by the Manuscripts and Archives Division New York Public Library Retrieved from https en wikipedia org w index php title Richard Mansfield amp oldid 1213397440, wikipedia, wiki, book, books, library,

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