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Ira Aldridge

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Ira Aldridge
Portrait of Aldridge byJames Northcote,1826
Born(1807-07-24)July 24, 1807
New York City,United States
DiedAugust 7, 1867(1867-08-07)(aged 60)
Łódź,Poland
Burial placeOld Łódź Cemetery,Poland
CitizenshipUnited States, United Kingdom
Occupation(s)Actor, playwright
Years active1820s–1867
Spouses
ChildrenIra Daniel,Amanda,Ira Frederick,Luranah,Rachael

Ira Frederick Aldridge(July 24, 1807 – August 7, 1867) was an American-born British actor, playwright, and theatre manager, known for his portrayal ofShakespeareancharacters.James Hewlettand Aldridge are regarded as the firstBlack Americantragedians.

Born inNew York City,Aldridge's first professional acting experience was in the early 1820s with theAfrican Grove Theatretroupe. Facing discrimination in America, he left in 1824 forEnglandand made his debut at London'sRoyal Coburg Theatre.As his career grew, his performances of Shakespeare's classics eventually met with critical acclaim and he subsequently became the manager ofCoventry's Coventry Theatre Royal. From 1852, Aldridge regularly toured much ofContinental Europeand received top honours from several heads of state. He died suddenly while on tour inPolandand was buried with honours inŁódź.

Aldridge is the only actor of African-American descent honoured with a bronze plaque at theShakespeare Memorial TheatreinStratford-upon-Avon.Two of Aldridge's daughters,AmandaandLuranah,became professional opera singers.

Early life and career

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Ira Aldridge as Mungo inThe Padlock.

Aldridge was born inNew York CitytoReverendDaniel and Luranah (also spelled Lurona) Aldridge on July 24, 1807, but a few early biographies state that he was born inBel Air,Maryland.At the age of 13, Aldridge went to theAfrican Free Schoolin New York City, established by theNew-York Manumission Societyfor the children offree black peopleandslaves.They were given a classical education, including English grammar, writing, mathematics, geography, and astronomy.[1]His classmates at the school includedJames McCune Smith,Alexander Crummell,Charles L. Reason,George T. Downing,andHenry H. Garnet.[2]

Aldridge's first professional acting experience was in the early 1820s with theAfrican Company,a group founded and managed by William Henry Brown andJames Hewlett.In 1821, the group built the African Grove Theatre, the first resident African-American theatre in the United States.[3]The short-lived company was the subject of protests by neighbors, attacks by a rival company, and aracistparody by theSheriff of New York.The Sheriff of the time was also a newspaper publisher, making it clear that Aldridge's career prospects in America were dim at best.[4]Aldridge made his acting debut as Rolla, a Peruvian character inRichard Brinsley Sheridan'sPizarro.He may have also played the male lead inRomeo and Juliet,as reported later in an 1860 memoir by his schoolfellow, Dr. James McCune Smith.[5]

Portrait of Aldridge as Mungo, held at theNorthwestern University.

Confronted with the persistent discrimination which black actors had to endure in the United States, Aldridge emigrated toLiverpool,England, in 1824 with actor James Wallack. During this time the Industrial Revolution had begun, bringing about radical economic change that helped expand the development of theatres.[5]TheBritish parliamenthadabolished slavery in the UK in the 11th century,hadoutlawedtheAtlantic slave tradeand was moving towardabolishing slavery in the British Empire,which increased the prospect of black actors from abroad looking to perform.[6]

Having limited onstage experience and lacking popular recognition, Aldridge concocted a story of his African lineage, claiming to have descended from theFulaniprincely line.[3]By 1831,[7]Aldridge had temporarily taken the name of Keene, a homonym for the then popular British actor,Edmund Kean.Aldridge observed a common theatrical practice of assuming an identical or similar name to that of a celebrity in order to garner attention. In addition to being called F. W. Keene Aldridge, he would later be called AfricanRoscius,after the famousRomanactor of the first century BCE.[6]

In May 1825, at the age of 17, Aldridge first appeared on the London stage in a low profile production ofOthello.[4]On October 10, 1825, Aldridge made a much more high-profile debut at London'sRoyal Coburg Theatre,and became the first African-American actor to establish himself professionally in a foreign country. He played the lead role ofOroonokoinThe Revolt of Surinam, or A Slave's Revenge;this play was an adaptation ofThomas Southerne'sOroonoko(itself adapted fromAphra Behn'soriginal work).[5]

According to the scholar Shane White, British theatre audiences had heard of New York'sAfrican Theatrebecause of actor and comedianCharles Mathews.[8]Mathews had recently produced a popular comedic lampoon of what he imagined the African Theater was like (he had never actually been).[4]Bernth Lindfors stated:

[W]hen Aldridge starts appearing on the stage at the Royalty Theatre, he's just called a gentleman of color. But when he moves over to the Royal Coburg, he's advertised in the first playbill as the American Tragedian from the African Theater New York City. The second playbill refers to him as "The African Tragedian". So everybody goes to the theater expecting to laugh because this is the man they think Mathews saw in New York City.[6]

An innovation Aldridge introduced early in his career was a direct address to the audience on the closing night of his engagement at a given theatre. Aldridge would speak to the audience on a variety of social issues which affected the United States, Europe and Africa. In particular, Aldridge spoke on his pro-abolitionistsentiments, for which he was widely celebrated.[3]

Critical reception

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Aldridge as Aaron inTitus Andronicus[9]

During Aldridge's seven-week engagement at the Royal Coburg, the young actor starred in five plays. He earned admiration from his audiences while critics emphasized Aldridge's lack of formal stage training and experience. According to modern critics Errol Hill and James Vernon Hatch, early reviews were mixed. ForThe Timeshe was "baker-kneed and narrow-chested with lips so shaped that it is utterly impossible for him to pronounce English";The Globefound his conception of Oroonoko to be very judicious and his enunciation distinct and sonorous; andThe Dramadescribed him as "tall and tolerably well proportioned with a weak voice that gabbles apace."[5]The Timescritic also found fault with Aldridge's "copper" complexion, considering it insufficiently dark for Othello.[10]Meanwhile,The Athenaeummagazine was scandalized by a black man with white actresses, and the paperFigaro in Londonsought to "drive him from the stage" because of his color.[4]

Aldridge performed scenes fromOthellothat impressed reviewers. One critic wrote, "InOthello[Aldridge] delivers the most difficult passages with a degree of correctness that surprises the beholder. "[11]He gradually progressed to larger roles; by 1825, he had top billing at London's Coburg Theatre as Oronoko inA Slave's Revenge,soon to be followed by the role of Gambia inThe Slave,and the title role of Shakespeare'sOthello.He also played major roles in plays such asThe Castle SpectreandThe Padlock.In search of new and suitable material, Aldridge also appeared occasionally as white European characters, for which he would be made up with greasepaint and wig. Examples of these are Captain Dirk Hatteraick and Bertram in Rev. R. C. Maturin'sBertram,the title role in Shakespeare'sRichard III,andShylockinThe Merchant of Venice.

Touring, and later years

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In 1828, Aldridge visitedCoventrywhile he was largely touring the English provinces. After his acting impressed the people of the city, he was made the manager at Coventry Theatre Royal, owned bySir Skears Rew,and thus became the first everAfrican Americanto manage a British theatre.[12]

During the months when Aldridge remained in Coventry, he made various speeches about the evils ofslavery.And after he left Coventry, his speeches and the impression he made, inspired the people of Coventry to go to the county hall, and petition to theParliament,to abolishslavery.[12]

Aldridge asOthellobyWilliam Mulready,Walters Art Museum

In 1831 Aldridge successfully played inDublin;at several locations in southern Ireland, where he created a sensation in the small towns; as well as inBath,England andEdinburgh,Scotland. The actorEdmund Keanpraised his Othello, and since he was an African-American actor from the African Theatre,The Timestermed him the "AfricanRoscius",after the famed actor of ancient Rome. Aldridge used this to his benefit and expanded African references in his biography that appeared in playbills,[6]also identifying his birthplace as "Africa" in his entry in the 1851 census.[13]

By at least 1833 he had added theanti-heroicrole of Zanga inEdward Young's TheRevengeto his repertoire.[14][15]The Revenge(1721) race-flips the plot ofOthelloby showing how Zanga, a captured Moorish prince who has become the servant and confidant of the noble Don Alonzo, vengefully tricks him into believing his wife is unfaithful. Alonzo finally kills himself and Zanga exults: "Let Europe and her pallid sons go weep; / Let Afric and her hundred thrones rejoice: / Oh, my dear countrymen, look down and see / How I bestride your prostrate conqueror!"[16]An illustrated review of this performance[17]at the Surrey Theatre[18]shows Aldridge triumphing over Alonzo, dressed in flowing Moorish robes, which, according to the critic, "reminds one of the portraits ofAbd-el Kader".The same reviewer praised Aldridge's comic talents in the contrasting role of Mungo (in the Bickerstaffe farceThe Padlock), describing them as a refreshing corrective, "...differing entirely from the Ethiopian absurdities we have been taught to look upon as correct portraitures; his totalabandonis very amusing. "[18]

Aldridge asKing Lear

In 1841, Aldridge toured towns across Lincolnshire, performing inGainsborough,[19]Grantham,[20]Spilsby,[21]andHorncastle.[22]In 1842, Aldridge performed inLincoln;local newspapers reported that his arrival in a travelling coach was a remarkable sight and caused a stir with inhabitants of the city.[23][24]Despite the eye-catching arrival, Aldridge's performances were not well attended.[25]In June 1844 he made appearances on stage inExmouth(Devon,England).[26]In 1847, he performed inBoston.[27]Aldridge returned to Lincoln in 1849 to favourable reviews.[28]The Lincoln Standard reported on Aldridge's performance, “his talents are first rate, and his conduct gentlemanly, strongly evidencing that mankind all have an equal capacity, if they had but the opportunity of receiving instruction.”[29]

In 1852, Aldridge choseBrusselsinBelgiumas the starting point of its first tour in continental and central Europe. He toured with successes all over Europe. He had particular success inPrussia,where he was presented to the Duchess ofSaxe-Coburg-Gotha,and performed forWilliam IV of Prussia;he also performed inBudapest.An 1858 tour took him toSerbiaand to theRussian Empire,where he became acquainted withCount Fyodor Tolstoy,Mikhail Shchepkinand Ukrainian poet and artistTaras Shevchenko,who did his portrait inpastel.[30]He introduced and increased interest in Shakespeare in some areas of Central Europe, and in Poland in particular. As an African American in the age of slavery, he became for some an identifying symbol also for the oppressed of Poland, drawing surveillance by the Russian government.[31]

Now of an appropriate age, about this time, he played the title role ofKing Lear(in England) for the first time. He purchased some property in England,[32]toured Russia again (1862), and applied for British citizenship (1863). Shortly before his death he was apparently ready to return to America to perform. It was reported that Aldridge had negotiated a 100-show-tour throughout the post-Civil WarUnited States.[4]In its obituary of Aldridge,The New York Timesstated he had been booked to appear in the city's Academy of Music in September, but "Death has prevented the fulfilment of his intention".[33]His funeral inŁódź,where he died unexpectedly, was accompanied by an elaborate procession, with the Art Society carrying his medals and awards through the streets, and his large tomb in the city cemetery was covered in flowers.[31]

Marriage and family

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Portrait as Othello in oil painting byLéon Herbo(1850-1907)

Soon after going to England, on 27 November 1825, Aldridge married Margaret Gill, an Englishwoman, atSt George's, Bloomsbury.[34]He recorded in hisMemoirthat she was "the natural daughter of a member of Parliament, and a man of high standing in the county of Berks", but her father was in reality a stocking-weaver fromNorthallerton,Yorkshire. Lindfors suggests that Aldridge "may have invented this fiction to give her an air of respectability in polite society", raising her social status to protect her from criticism for marrying a black man. Their marriage angered the pro-slavery lobby, which attempted to end Aldridge's career.[35]The couple was married for 40 years until her death in 1864.[36]

Aldridge's first son, Ira Daniel, was born in May 1847. The identity of his mother is unknown, but it could not have been Margaret Aldridge, who was 49 years old and had been in ill health for years.[37]She raised Ira Daniel as her own; they shared a loving relationship until her death. He emigrated to Australia in February 1867.[38][39]

Portrait in oil painting byLéon Herbo(1850-1907)

Aldridge bought 5 Hamlet Road, in the prosperous suburbs of Upper Norwood, London, in 1861–2 shortly before becoming a naturalised British citizen in 1863. It was where his wife, Margaret, and later his second wife, Amanda, brought up his children. He named the house ‘Luranah Villa’ in memory of his mother. It now bears his English Heritage blue plaque.[32]

A year after Margaret's death, on April 20, 1865, Aldridge married his mistress, the self-styledSwedishcountess Amanda von Brandt (1834-1915). They had four children:Irene Luranah,[40]Ira Frederick andAmanda Aldridge,who all went on to musical careers, the two girls as opera singers. Their daughter Rachael Frederica was born shortly after Aldridge's death and died in infancy. Brandt died in 1915 and is buried atHighgate Woods,London.

Aldridge spent most of his final years with his family in Russia and continental Europe, interspersed with occasional visits to England. He planned to return to the post-Civil-WarUnited States. After completing a 70-city tour of France in 1867 and his French tour of Belgium (Ghent and Brussels), Aldridge died of a prolonged lung condition on 7 August 1867 while visitingŁódź,than part of theRussian Empire,in Poland.[41]He was buried in the city'sOld Evangelical Cemetery;23 years passed before a proper tombstone was erected. His grave is tended by the Society of Polish Artists of Film and Theatre. A commemorative plaque was unveiled in 2014 at 175Piotrkowska Street,where Aldridge was said to have died. The plaque was created by sculptorMarian Konieczny.

Aldridge's tomb inŁódź,Poland.

A half-length portrait of 1826 byJames Northcoteshows Aldridge dressed for the role of Othello, but in a relatively undramatic portrait pose, is on display at theManchester Art Gallery(in the Manchester section). Aldridge performed in the city many times.[42]Ablue plaqueunveiled in 2007 commemorates Aldridge at 5 Hamlet Road inUpper Norwood,London.[32]The plaque describes him as the "African Roscius".[32]

The case ofStothard v. Aldridge

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In 1856 Aldridge was successfully sued by actor William Stothard,[43]who alleged Aldridge had had an affair with his wife Emma[44]three years before, resulting in the birth of a son.[45](UnderEnglish law at the timethe husband of an adulterous wife was entitled to sue her lover for compensation.) At a hearing on January 14 in London beforeMr. Justice Erlethe jury found for the plaintiff Stothard, but in view of mitigating circumstances awarded him only £2 in damages.[46]

Aldridge was away on tour in Ireland when the trial took place[46]but he was heading the bill at a London theatre by the following year,[47]indicating the scandal caused his career no lasting damage.

Ira Aldridge Troupe

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As Othello in Poland, 1860

Aldridge enjoyed enormous fame as a tragic actor during his lifetime, but after his death, he was soon forgotten (in Europe). The news of Ira Aldridge's death in Poland and the record of his achievement as an actor reached the American black community slowly.[48]In African-American circles, Aldridge was a legendary figure. Many black actors viewed him as an inspirational model, so when his death was revealed, several amateur groups sought to honor his memory by adopting his name for their companies.[5]

Many troupes were being founded in various places around America. In the late nineteenth century Aldridge-titled troupes were established in Washington, DC, in Philadelphia, and in New Haven, their respective productions at the time being an adaptation ofKotzebue'sDie Spanier in Peruby Sheridan asPizarroin 1883,SchoolbyThomas William Robertsonin 1885, andGeorge Melville Baker'sComradesin 1889.[5]

The most prominent troupe named for him was the Ira Aldridge Troupe in Philadelphia, founded in 1863, some 35 years after Aldridge left the US for good.[49]The Ira Aldridge Troupe was aminstrelsy groupthat caricatured Irish men. The Ira Aldridge Troupe is unique in annals of minstrelsy; it was named for a Black actor who had left his homeland some 35 years before and achieved fame in Europe. Unlike most, later, Black minstrel companies, the Aldridge Troupe apparently did not do plantation material, although they were billed as a 'contraband troupe'—that is, fugitive slaves. Perhaps because of their substantially Black audience, the troupe felt no need to "put on the mask." Although much of the material the group performed was standard fare, several of the company's acts were downright subversive.[49]

Portrait inpastel,byTaras Shevchenko,1858

The Ira Aldridge Troupe appearing during the American Civil War made it "unique in the annals of minstrelsy." TheClipper(New York City) thought it was important enough to review; and it performed before a mixed audience, at a time when often white and black audiences were separated. Third, it was a black troupe presenting a program designed to appeal to their black audience. The Ira Aldridge Troupe performances eschewed the southern genre of old "darkies" longing for the plantation. The exclusion of southern nostalgia may have been in deference to a majority-black audience. The New YorkClipperreported them as "A more incorrigible set of cusses we never saw; they beat our Bowery gods all to pieces."[5]

The troupe also created performances and songs that referred to the continuing Civil War. A ballad, "When the Cruel War is Over", became well known; it was performed by three members of the troupe—Miss S. Burton, Miss R. Clark, and Mr. C. Nixon. The song sold over a million copies of sheet music and was one of the most popular sentimental songs of the Civil War.[49]The song describes a soldier's farewell to his lady, the wounds he receives in battle, and his dying request for a last caress. The song, highly popular with white minstrel groups, was an example of the change in white minstrelsy that had been occurring at this time.[49]

Another popular production was a farce calledThe Irishman and the Stranger,with a Mr. Brown playing a character called Pat O'Callahan and a Mr. Jones playing the Stranger. This farce displayed black actors in white face speaking in a "nigger accent". TheClipperreporter referred to the performance as a "truly laughable affair, the 'Irish nagur' mi xing up a rich Irish brogue promiscuously with the sweet nigger accent".[49]Perhaps the Aldridge Troupe's audience got its biggest satisfaction, however, from the role reversal inherent in the piece: since the beginning of minstrelsy, minstrels of Irish heritage, such asDan Bryantand Richard Hooley, had been caricaturing Black men—now it was the turn of Black men to caricature the Irish.[49]

The history of minstrelsy also shows the cross-cultural influences, with Whites adopting elements of Black culture. The Ira Aldridge Troupe tried to pirate that piracy, and, in collaboration with its audience, turn minstrelsy to its own ends.[49]

Aldridge family

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Legacy and honors

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Blue plaque commemorating Ira Aldridge's theatre location in Coventry, with actorEarl Cameron,who helped unveil it on 3 August 2017
English Heritageblue plaqueat 5 Hamlet Road, Upper Norwood, London

The Black Doctor(1847)

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The Black Doctor,originally written in French byAuguste Anicet-Bourgeois,was adapted by Aldridge for the English stage.The Black Doctoris a romantic play about Fabian, a bi-racial physician, and his patient Pauline, the daughter of a French aristocrat. The couple falls in love and marries in secret. Although the play depicts racial and family conflict, and ends with Fabian's death, Aldridge was said to portray his title character with dignity.[61]

See also

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References

[edit]
  1. ^Evans, Nicholas M (September 2002)."Ira aldridge: Shakespeare and minstrelsy".American Transcendental Quarterly.16(3): 165–187.ProQuest222437800– via ProQuest.
  2. ^Simmons, William J., and Henry McNeal Turner. Men of Mark: Eminent, Progressive and Rising. GM Rewell & Company, 1887. p657
  3. ^abcNelson, E.S. (2004). InAfrican American Dramatists: An A-to-Z Guide.Santa Barbara, CA: Greenwood.
  4. ^abcdefRoss, Alex (July 29, 2013).""Othello's Daughter"".The New Yorker.RetrievedJanuary 14,2019.
  5. ^abcdefgHill, Errol G., and James Vernon Hatch. (2003).A History of African American Theatre.Cambridge University Press.
  6. ^abcdLindfors, Bernth (2007).Ira Aldridge in Europe: How Aldridge controlled his identity as the 'African Roscius'(Audio documentary). Shakespeare in American Life.Folger Shakespeare Library.Archived transcript.Archived fromthe original(MP3)on December 18, 2015.RetrievedOctober 15,2010.
  7. ^"The Coburg Theatre (review)".The Times.London. October 11, 1825.
  8. ^White, Shane (2007).James Hewlett after the African Grove: Shutting down the African Grove Theater(Audio documentary). Shakespeare in American Life.Folger Shakespeare Library.Archived transcript.Archived fromthe original(MP3)on December 18, 2015.RetrievedOctober 15,2010.
  9. ^"In the mid 19th century, the African-American actor Ira Aldridge and the English playwright C.A. Somerset collaborated on a new version that transformed Aaron, a Moor and the lover of the barbarian queen Tamora, from villain to hero, subverting racial stereotype. Aldridge and Somerset cut out most of the carnage and interpolated at least one scene from a contemporary melodrama that Aldridge had also starred in. Aldridge’s opinion: “I will venture to say that there is not a play on the stage with a more powerful climax.” A Scottish critic praised Aldridge’s performance as Aaron as “remarkable for energy, tempered by dignity and discretion.”Soloski, Alexis (April 4, 2019)."Let It Bleed: The Perverse Influence of 'Titus Andronicus'".The New York Times.RetrievedApril 15,2019.
  10. ^The Times(London, England), 11 October 1825, p. 2.
  11. ^Herbert Marshall,Ira Aldridge: The African Tragedian,
  12. ^abcde"First black Shakespearean actor honoured".BBC.August 3, 2017.RetrievedMay 20,2021.
  13. ^1851 England, Wales and Scotland census, folio 446, p. 30. Aldridge is staying at a boarding house in Derby with his wife and son, and gives his occupation as "Tragedian'".
  14. ^Schomburg, Arthur Alfonso."List showing the theatres and plays in various European cities where Ira Aldridge, the African Roscius, acted during the years 1827–1867".Harvard Library.RetrievedJune 15,2020.
  15. ^"A collection of playbills from Theatre Royal, Dublin 1830-1839 Collection Item".British Library.Theatre Royal, Dublin.RetrievedJune 15,2020.
  16. ^The Revenge:A Tragedy by Edward Young.
  17. ^"The Theatre",Black Presence, The National Archives.
  18. ^abThe Illustrated London News,1 April 1848,p. 218.
  19. ^"Lincolnshire Chronicle". March 26, 1841.
  20. ^"Lincolnshire Chronicle". April 28, 1841.
  21. ^"Stamford Mercury". April 30, 1841.
  22. ^"Lincolnshire Chronicle". May 14, 1841.
  23. ^The Lincoln Standard & General Advertiser.February 9, 1842.{{cite news}}:Missing or empty|title=(help)
  24. ^"Lincolnshire Chronicle". February 18, 1842.
  25. ^"Stamford Mercury". February 25, 1842.
  26. ^"Exmouth. This pleasant watering place has during the last two days been enlivened by the performances of the 'African Roscius'. Numerous assemblies have on each night testified their approbation of his impersonation of Othello and Revenge." inTrewman's Exeter Flying Post,26 June 1844 (issue no. 4103).
  27. ^"Lincolnshire Chronicle". December 10, 1847.
  28. ^"Lincolnshire Times". January 30, 1849.
  29. ^"The Lincoln Standard & General Advertiser". February 9, 1842.
  30. ^"The Never Ending Tour – Ira Aldridge".journeys.dartmouth.edu.RetrievedMay 21,2022.
  31. ^abSakowska, Aleksandra (September 20, 2016)."Ira Aldridge's Polish Journey: Developing the Shakespearean Canon and Influencing Local Politics".European Studies Blog. British Library.
  32. ^abcde"Blue plaque: Aldridge, Ira (1807–1867)".English Heritage.RetrievedFebruary 2,2019.
  33. ^The New York Times,12 August 1867: "Obituary: Ira Aldridge, the African Tragedian".
  34. ^Lindfors, Bernth (1994).""Nothing Extenuate, Nor Set Down Aught in Malice": New Biographical Information on Ira Aldridge ".African American Review.28(3): 457–472.doi:10.2307/3041981.ISSN1062-4783.JSTOR3041981– via JSTOR.A page from a London marriage register (Fig. 1) shows that they were married on 27 November 1825 by Rev. L. H. Wynn in the presence of two witnesses, William Tanfield and Margaret Robinson. The ceremony took place at St. George's Church, Bloomsbury, a large church consecrated in 1730 that is still in use today.
  35. ^"Black British Entertainers -Ira Aldridge".RetrievedDecember 8,2021.
  36. ^Lindfors, Bernth (2011).Ira Aldridge: The early years 1807-1833.University Rochester Press. p. 93.ISBN978-1-58046-381-2.RetrievedAugust 30,2021.
  37. ^Lindfors, Bernth (1994).""Nothing Extenuate, Nor Set Down Aught in Malice": New Biographical Information on Ira Aldridge ".African American Review.28(3): 457–472.doi:10.2307/3041981.ISSN1062-4783.JSTOR3041981.
  38. ^Lindfors, Bernth (2012), "The Lost Life of Ira Daniel Aldridge (Part 1)",Text Matters: A Journal of Literature, Theory and Culture,No.2, (2012), pp.195-208.doi:10.2478/v10231-012-0064-5
  39. ^Lindfors, Bernth (2013), "The Lost Life of Ira Daniel Aldridge (Part 2)",Text Matters: A Journal of Literature, Theory and Culture,No.3, (2013), pp.235-251.doi:10.2478/texmat-2013-0037
  40. ^"Shakespeare, Wagner, Aldridge".Alex Ross: The Rest Is Noise.RetrievedFebruary 15,2019.
  41. ^Simmons, William J., and Henry McNeal Turner. Men of Mark: Eminent, Progressive and Rising. GM Rewell & Company, 1887, pp. 733–739.
  42. ^Manchester Art Gallery
  43. ^Lindfors, Bernth (2012)."The Lost Life of Ira Daniel Aldridge (Part 1)"(PDF).Text Matters.2(2): 197–198.doi:10.2478/v10231-012-0064-5.hdl:1885/59028.S2CID199664361.
  44. ^Emma Iggulden m. William Stothard 15 August 1850: see England and Wales Marriages (1850), vol. 1, p. 344, line 5
  45. ^Darby, Nell (2017).Life on the Victorian Stage: Theatrical Gossip.PEN & SWORD HISTORY. p. 95.ISBN9781473882430.
  46. ^ab’’The Times’’(London), 15 January 1856, p.9: Law Report
  47. ^"City of London Theatre - Great Triumph of the African tragedian, Mr Ira Aldridge, who will this evening perform Shylock..." ’’The Times’’(London), 14 October 1857, p.9
  48. ^Lindfors, Bernth.Ira Aldridge, the African Roscius.Rochester, New York: University of Rochester Press, 2007
  49. ^abcdefgShalom, Jack. "The Ira Aldridge Troupe: Early Black Minstrelsy in Philadelphia."African-American Review28.4 (1994): 653–658
  50. ^Lindfors, 2012; and 2013.
  51. ^"Prof. Arthur LaBrew, Musicologist | Ellis Washington Report - Part 3".December 28, 2012.
  52. ^The Times(London), 10 March 1956, p.9, 'Miss Amanda Ira Aldridge': "Miss Amanda Ira Aldridge, who was the last remaining pupil of the Swedish nightingale, Jenny Lind, died yesterday afternoon in hospital in Surrey, the day before her ninetieth birthday. She was one of the foundation members of the Royal College of Music and taught singing for 65 years. Her most famous pupils were the contralto Marion Anderson and bass baritone Paul Robeson. Using the pen name of Montagu Ring(sic), she composed several works, her most popular work being three African dances. Her last public appearance was on television on April 16, 1954, in Eric Robinson's "Music for You." She was the daughter of the Negro tragedian Ira Aldridge. "
  53. ^England and Wales Births 1868 (1st quarter): Croydon, Surrey, Vol. 2A, p.201, line no.215.
  54. ^England and Wales Deaths 1869 (4th quarter): Croydon, Surrey, Vol. 2A,p.126, Line no.123.
  55. ^Douglas O. Barnett, "Ira Aldridge",Black Past, accessed 15 October 2010.
  56. ^Roberts, Brian (2012). "A London Legacy of Ira Aldridge: Henry Francis Downing and the Paratheatrical Poetics of Plot and Cast(e)".Modern Drama.55(3): 386–406.doi:10.3138/md.55.3.386.S2CID162466396.
  57. ^Chambers, Colin (2011).Black and Asian Theatre in Britain: A History.London: Routledge. p. 63.
  58. ^"Great Lives".BBC Radio 4.April 26, 2022.RetrievedJuly 11,2024.
    A podcast is also available for downloading within the United Kingdom, but not necessarily elsewhere, as in some cases the BBC geoblocks particular podcasts from being downloaded outside the United Kingdom.
  59. ^Newmark, Paige.Othello: New Critical Essays.Edited by Philip C. Kolin. London and New York: Routledge, 2002.
  60. ^Howard, Anthony (October 16, 2020)."Professor Tony Howard - University of Warwick".Warwick.RetrievedMay 20,2021.
  61. ^Hatch, James V., and Ted Shine, eds.Black Theatre U.S.A..The Free Press, 1996 [1974], p. 4.

Further reading

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