Tag Archives: Ellen Terry

“Tennyson’s rank is too well fixed and we love him too much.” — Oscar Wilde

He was not only a minor Virgil, he is also with Virgil as Dante saw him, a Virgil among the Shades, the saddest of all English poets. – T.S. Eliot It’s Alfred, Lord Tennyson’s birthday, born on August 6, 1809. … Continue reading

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“Imagination! Imagination! I put it first years ago, when I was asked what qualities I thought necessary for success on the stage.” –Ellen Terry

“It is only in comedy that people seem to know what I am driving at!” — Ellen Terry In 1907, great English actress Ellen Terry (approaching her 50th year onstage) appeared in George Bernard Shaw’s satirical Captain Brassbound’s Conversion. Shaw … Continue reading

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Recommended Books: Memoirs

More recommendations: Recommended Fiction Recommended Non-Fiction MEMOIRS The Fervent Years: The Group Theatre And The Thirties, by Harold Clurman Probably the most famous of all the Group Theatre-related books. Harold Clurman writes his memories of that time and what those … Continue reading

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Recommended: Biographies

For starters: My recommended Fiction books My recommended Non-Fiction books BIOGRAPHIES: American Sphinx: The Character of Thomas Jefferson, by Joseph Ellis I’ve written a lot about Joseph Ellis’ work here. While I love David McCullough’s work so much, Ellis is … Continue reading

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Interpreting Lady Macbeth: Sarah Siddons vs. Ellen Terry

For Shakespeare’s Birthday Ellen Terry Sarah Siddons Michael Holroyd’s A Strange Eventful History: The Dramatic Lives of Ellen Terry, Henry Irving, and Their Remarkable Families tells the story of 19th century theatre-manager Henry Irving, and his lead actress Ellen Terry. … Continue reading

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The Books: Ellen Terry & Bernard Shaw: A Correspondence

Daily Book Excerpt: Memoirs: Next book on the Memoir/Letters/Journals shelf is ELLEN TERRY & BERNARD SHAW: A CORRESPONDENCE., edited by Christopher St. John (a woman, who was the longtime companion of Ellen Terry’s daughter – both formidable women in their … Continue reading

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2010 Books Read

Round-up of the books I read this year, in the order in which I read them. I am nearly finished with one last book (a collection of stories by Miranda July, given to me by my sister Siobhan for my … Continue reading

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Virginia Woolf on Ellen Terry

When Ellen Terry was onstage, observed Virginia Woolf, “all the other actors were put out, as electric lights are put out.” This is a blessing and a curse. Star power. Charisma. You either have it or you don’t. In 1907, … Continue reading

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Playing Shakespeare

“Play to the lines, through the lines, but never between the lines. There simply isn’t time for it.” — George Bernard Shaw to actress Ellen Terry on performing Shakespeare, 1896

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“Enter a chorus of lepers.”

A biography that I am drooling to read (eventually, when I get back up on the reading horse for real): Michael Holroyd’s A Strange Eventful History: The Dramatic Lives of Ellen Terry, Henry Irving, and Their Remarkable Families, a dual … Continue reading

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