|
Do you have ancestors that were in the theatre?
Some family historians will probably find that they are descended from someone who used to be in the theatre. It's possible to find out about a famous ancestor by simply looking them up on the internet, in resources like WIkipedia. But this will only tell you a little about an ancestor.
If they were on the stage prior to 1923, you can look up obituaries, find out details about any plays they were in, if they performed in front of royalty, a short biography, and more on the CD "Who's Who in the Theatre - 1922".
If you are not reseraching your family history and are simply interested in the theatre, the the CD would also be of interest to you. It includes biographies of such greats like Charles Chaplin, Douglas Fairbanks, Cecil Humphreys and Lillie Langtry.
Ancestors in the Theatre
Theatre is the branch of the performing arts concerned with acting out stories in front of an audience using combinations of speech, gesture, mime, puppets, music, dance, sound and spectacle — indeed any one or more elements of the other performing arts.
Many people have tread the boards and performed in the theatre, some more famous than others, but all of them contributing towards the modern-day theatrical performaces we see today.
For those interested in the theatre, the CD "Who's Who in the Theatre? 1922" is an interesting 1300 page PDF document that is filled with biographies, playbills, obituaries of actors and playwrights dating back to the 1600s, family trees of many theatrical families, reviews of the original publication, and more.
There were a number of novelty acts that usually occured in theatre, and these could include jugglers, ventriloquists, mimes/silent comedy acts, and even midgets, or "Living Dolls" as they were sometimes called.
A group of ten, called 'John Lester's Midgets', performed at Blackpool for many years before the second world war. W.W. MacGregor, one of the performers, was at the time only 20 years old and 34 inches high! Another novelty act was Harold Pyott, who was 42 years old and 23 inches high, weighing only 24lbs - he was known as "Tiny Tim" or "The English Midget".
For More Information about Theatrical Families:
Who's Who in the Theatre - 1922 available
at GenealogySupplies.com
One review of the original publication said: "This compilation, in short, is no longer a luxury; it has become a positive necessity. The new edition bears ample testimony to his untiring industry. All who are interested in affairs theatrical will welcome its appearance." |
