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Ruth Draper

March 16, 2024

Ruth Draper (December 2, 1884 – December 30, 1956) was an American actress, dramatist and noted diseuse[1] who specialized in character-driven monologues and monodrama. Her best-known pieces include The Italian Lesson, Three Women and Mr. Clifford, Doctors and Diets, and A Church in Italy.

Ruth Draper
Portrait of Ruth Draper by John Singer Sargent, 1913
Born(1884-12-02)December 2, 1884
New York City, US
DiedDecember 30, 1956(1956-12-30) (aged 72)
New York City, US
OccupationStage actress

Early life and family edit

Ruth Draper was born in New York City, the youngest child of Dr. William Henry and Ruth (née Dana) Draper. Her father, who was born in Brattleboro, Vermont,[2][3] had the affluence to support a large family with the help of several servants.[4] Ruth Draper's mother, the daughter of Charles Anderson Dana, editor and publisher of The New York Sun, married Dr. Draper in 1878 some years after the death of his first wife, Lucy.[4][5] Her nephew, Paul Draper, was a noted dancer and actor. Draper's second cousin was the society architect Paul Phipps, father of the British performer Joyce Grenfell. Her nephew Raimund Sanders Draper was a WWII pilot.[6][7]

Career edit

Ruth Draper's inspiration to become an actress came from the Polish pianist Ignacy Jan Paderewski, a friend of her family.[8] She made her Broadway debut in the 1916 play A Lady's Name by Cyril Harcourt,[9] and by 1921 was becoming well known as monologist, or more specifically a diseuse, appearing in monodramas.

Draper dominated the field of professional solo performance during the second quarter of the twentieth century, performing with great success throughout the United States and Europe. Draper's one-person shows differed in kind from the majority of the early lyceum and Chautauqua solo performers who preceded her, in that she portrayed original characters in her monologues/monodramas rather than drawing on selections from published literature.[10]

With a chair, shawl, and occasional table as her only props, Draper entertained audiences worldwide[where?] in a half dozen languages for nearly forty years.[8] Her best-known pieces include The Italian Lesson, Three Women and Mr. Clifford, Doctors and Diets, and A Church in Italy.

 
Ruth Draper as a Dalmatian Peasant by John Singer Sargent

Such theatre luminaries as Bernard Shaw, Thornton Wilder, John Gielgud, Katharine Hepburn, Maurice Chevalier, Laurence Olivier, and Uta Hagen were among those impressed by Draper's artistry and talent, as were the authors Henry James, Henry Adams, Edith Wharton, and Agatha Christie. Draper inspired characters in two of Christie's works: Carlotta Adams in the 1933 novel Lord Edgware Dies[11] and Aspasia Glen in the short story "The Dead Harlequin".[citation needed] Christie wrote: "I thought how clever she was and how good her impersonations were; the wonderful way she could transform herself from a nagging wife to a peasant girl kneeling in a cathedral."[11]

In 1951 King George VI awarded Draper honorary membership in the Order of the British Empire with the rank of Commander (CBE). On April 29, 1953, she had lunch with C. S. Lewis the day after he saw her performance at the New Theatre in Oxford. Nearly a quarter century earlier she gave a performance at Windsor Castle after an invitation from King George V and Queen Mary.[12]

Draper had many relationships in Italy, in large part through her connection with Lauro De Bosis, a young Italian poet and writer who died in 1931 after a daring flight over Rome during which he threw thousands of leaflets denouncing Benito Mussolini and the National Fascist Party.[citation needed]

Death edit

Ruth Draper died on December 30, 1956, of an apparent heart attack,[13] just hours after giving a performance on Broadway at the Playhouse Theatre. Draper's family had a summer home in Islesboro, Maine, which she purchased from her family and where she spent increasing amounts of time in her later years.[14] A short biography of Draper is among several collected by the Anglo-Italian writer Iris Origo in her 1984 book, A Need to Testify.

Recordings edit

Recordings of Draper's monologues have influenced many contemporary writers and performers, including Joyce Grenfell, Lily Tomlin, Mike Nichols, Julie Harris, Simon Callow, Emma Thompson, Charles Busch, David Mamet, Julia Sweeney, Annette Bening, Maureen Lipman and John Lithgow.

Awards and honors edit

In 2019, the "Complete Recorded Monologues, Ruth Draper (1954–1956)" was selected by the Library of Congress for preservation in the National Recording Registry for being "culturally, historically, or aesthetically significant".[15]

References edit

  1. ^ Sir John Gielgud: A Life in Letters By John Gielgud – 2005 pg. 516
  2. ^ US Passport Application – December 2, 1884
  3. ^ The Atlanta Constitution April 27, 1901
  4. ^ a b US Census records 1860, 1870, 1880, 1900
  5. ^ The Bridgeport Post, December 31, 1956, pg. 16
  6. ^ Draper, Ruth; Dorothy Warren (November 3, 1999). The letters of Ruth Draper: self-portrait of an actress, 1920–1956. SIU Press. ISBN 978-0-8093-2188-9.
  7. ^ . BBC. September 22, 2011. Archived from the original on September 25, 2011.
  8. ^ a b The Ottawa Citizen December 31, 1956
  9. ^ IBDb.com
  10. ^ Gentile, John S. (1989). Cast of One. Urbana and Chicago: University of Illinois Press. pp. 104–105. ISBN 978-0-252-01584-7.
  11. ^ a b Christie, Agatha (1977). An Autobiography. Collins. p. 437. ISBN 0-00-216012-9.
  12. ^ "High Honor Awarded Ruth Draper by King". New York Times. December 19, 1951. Retrieved January 27, 2024.
  13. ^ The New York Times December 31, 1956, pg. 13
  14. ^ "Ruth Draper".
  15. ^ Andrews, Travis M. (March 20, 2019). "Jay-Z, a speech by Sen. Robert F. Kennedy and 'Schoolhouse Rock!' among recordings deemed classics by Library of Congress". The Washington Post. Retrieved March 25, 2019.

Further reading edit

  • Young, Jordan R. (1989). Acting Solo: The Art of One-Person Shows. Beverly Hills: Past Times Publishing Co.
  • Catron, Louis E. (2000). The Power of One: The Solo Play for Playwrights, Actors, and Directors. Portsmouth, N.H: Heinemann.
  • Origo, Iris (1984). A Need to Testify: Portraits of Lauro de Bosis, Ruth Draper, Gaetano Salvemini, Ignazio Silone and an essay on Biography, Harcourt Brace Jovanovich.
  • Gentile, John S. (1989). Cast of One: One-Person Shows from the Chautauqua Platform to the Broadway Stage. University of Illinois Press.

External links edit

 
Wikimedia Commons has media related to Ruth Draper.

March 16, 2024
ruth, draper, december, 1884, december, 1956, american, actress, dramatist, noted, diseuse, specialized, character, driven, monologues, monodrama, best, known, pieces, include, italian, lesson, three, women, clifford, doctors, diets, church, italy, portrait, j. Ruth Draper December 2 1884 December 30 1956 was an American actress dramatist and noted diseuse 1 who specialized in character driven monologues and monodrama Her best known pieces include The Italian Lesson Three Women and Mr Clifford Doctors and Diets and A Church in Italy Ruth DraperPortrait of Ruth Draper by John Singer Sargent 1913Born 1884 12 02 December 2 1884New York City USDiedDecember 30 1956 1956 12 30 aged 72 New York City USOccupationStage actress Contents 1 Early life and family 2 Career 3 Death 4 Recordings 5 Awards and honors 6 References 7 Further reading 8 External linksEarly life and family editRuth Draper was born in New York City the youngest child of Dr William Henry and Ruth nee Dana Draper Her father who was born in Brattleboro Vermont 2 3 had the affluence to support a large family with the help of several servants 4 Ruth Draper s mother the daughter of Charles Anderson Dana editor and publisher of The New York Sun married Dr Draper in 1878 some years after the death of his first wife Lucy 4 5 Her nephew Paul Draper was a noted dancer and actor Draper s second cousin was the society architect Paul Phipps father of the British performer Joyce Grenfell Her nephew Raimund Sanders Draper was a WWII pilot 6 7 Career editRuth Draper s inspiration to become an actress came from the Polish pianist Ignacy Jan Paderewski a friend of her family 8 She made her Broadway debut in the 1916 play A Lady s Name by Cyril Harcourt 9 and by 1921 was becoming well known as monologist or more specifically a diseuse appearing in monodramas Draper dominated the field of professional solo performance during the second quarter of the twentieth century performing with great success throughout the United States and Europe Draper s one person shows differed in kind from the majority of the early lyceum and Chautauqua solo performers who preceded her in that she portrayed original characters in her monologues monodramas rather than drawing on selections from published literature 10 With a chair shawl and occasional table as her only props Draper entertained audiences worldwide where in a half dozen languages for nearly forty years 8 Her best known pieces include The Italian Lesson Three Women and Mr Clifford Doctors and Diets and A Church in Italy nbsp Ruth Draper as a Dalmatian Peasant by John Singer SargentSuch theatre luminaries as Bernard Shaw Thornton Wilder John Gielgud Katharine Hepburn Maurice Chevalier Laurence Olivier and Uta Hagen were among those impressed by Draper s artistry and talent as were the authors Henry James Henry Adams Edith Wharton and Agatha Christie Draper inspired characters in two of Christie s works Carlotta Adams in the 1933 novel Lord Edgware Dies 11 and Aspasia Glen in the short story The Dead Harlequin citation needed Christie wrote I thought how clever she was and how good her impersonations were the wonderful way she could transform herself from a nagging wife to a peasant girl kneeling in a cathedral 11 In 1951 King George VI awarded Draper honorary membership in the Order of the British Empire with the rank of Commander CBE On April 29 1953 she had lunch with C S Lewis the day after he saw her performance at the New Theatre in Oxford Nearly a quarter century earlier she gave a performance at Windsor Castle after an invitation from King George V and Queen Mary 12 Draper had many relationships in Italy in large part through her connection with Lauro De Bosis a young Italian poet and writer who died in 1931 after a daring flight over Rome during which he threw thousands of leaflets denouncing Benito Mussolini and the National Fascist Party citation needed Death editRuth Draper died on December 30 1956 of an apparent heart attack 13 just hours after giving a performance on Broadway at the Playhouse Theatre Draper s family had a summer home in Islesboro Maine which she purchased from her family and where she spent increasing amounts of time in her later years 14 A short biography of Draper is among several collected by the Anglo Italian writer Iris Origo in her 1984 book A Need to Testify Recordings editRecordings of Draper s monologues have influenced many contemporary writers and performers including Joyce Grenfell Lily Tomlin Mike Nichols Julie Harris Simon Callow Emma Thompson Charles Busch David Mamet Julia Sweeney Annette Bening Maureen Lipman and John Lithgow Awards and honors editIn 2019 the Complete Recorded Monologues Ruth Draper 1954 1956 was selected by the Library of Congress for preservation in the National Recording Registry for being culturally historically or aesthetically significant 15 References edit Sir John Gielgud A Life in Letters By John Gielgud 2005 pg 516 US Passport Application December 2 1884 The Atlanta Constitution April 27 1901 a b US Census records 1860 1870 1880 1900 The Bridgeport Post December 31 1956 pg 16 Draper Ruth Dorothy Warren November 3 1999 The letters of Ruth Draper self portrait of an actress 1920 1956 SIU Press ISBN 978 0 8093 2188 9 The Spitfire Britain s Flying past BBC September 22 2011 Archived from the original on September 25 2011 a b The Ottawa Citizen December 31 1956 IBDb com Gentile John S 1989 Cast of One Urbana and Chicago University of Illinois Press pp 104 105 ISBN 978 0 252 01584 7 a b Christie Agatha 1977 An Autobiography Collins p 437 ISBN 0 00 216012 9 High Honor Awarded Ruth Draper by King New York Times December 19 1951 Retrieved January 27 2024 The New York Times December 31 1956 pg 13 Ruth Draper Andrews Travis M March 20 2019 Jay Z a speech by Sen Robert F Kennedy and Schoolhouse Rock among recordings deemed classics by Library of Congress The Washington Post Retrieved March 25 2019 Further reading editYoung Jordan R 1989 Acting Solo The Art of One Person Shows Beverly Hills Past Times Publishing Co Catron Louis E 2000 The Power of One The Solo Play for Playwrights Actors and Directors Portsmouth N H Heinemann Origo Iris 1984 A Need to Testify Portraits of Lauro de Bosis Ruth Draper Gaetano Salvemini Ignazio Silone and an essay on Biography Harcourt Brace Jovanovich Gentile John S 1989 Cast of One One Person Shows from the Chautauqua Platform to the Broadway Stage University of Illinois Press External links edit nbsp Wikimedia Commons has media related to Ruth Draper Ruth Draper at the Internet Broadway Database nbsp Ruth Draper at IMDb Biography from drapermonologues com Legacy from drapermonologues com Barnett Owen papers regarding Ruth Draper 1905 1956 held by the Billy Rose Theatre Division New York Public Library for the Performing Arts Images related to Ruth Draper NYPL Digital Gallery Morton Dauwen Zabel The Art of Ruth Draper Her Dramas and Characters With a Memoir Doubleday Garden City 1960 at archive org 2 photographs Encyclopaedia Britannica Retrieved from https en wikipedia org w index php title Ruth Draper amp oldid 1209450076, wikipedia, wiki, book, books, library,

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