Emelie Melville

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Emelie Melville

Emelie Melville (c. 1852 – 8 July 1932),[1] also known as Emelie Melville Derby, was an American actress, a star of comic opera, who had a considerable career in Australia.

History[edit]

She was born in Philadelphia and first appeared on stage at the age of 10 in several juvenile parts.

At age 16 she played Ophelia to John Wilkes Booth's Hamlet.[2]

She was the first in America to play the title role in The Grand Duchess, in San Francisco.[3][a] Around this time she married Thomas Derby; they were divorced by 1884.[4]

She first arrived in Australia in 1875 under engagement to W. S. Lyster to play in a series of operettas in Sydney, followed by Melbourne's Opera House, to packed houses.

She made a return tour of Australia in 1882.[3] A dispute over her contract led to her suing the J. C. Williamson organisation in 1883.[5] Costs involved led to her declaring insolvency in Melbourne.[6] In September 1884 she left Melbourne for India, heading a large company of performers[7] as the Emelie Melville Opera Company.

Around 1930 she had a small part in Margaret Anglin's revival of A Woman of No Importance, which was greatly appreciated by the audience.[1]

Returning to San Francisco a few months before her death in 1932, she told an interviewer: "I've had a long life with much in it. I longed for glory and life and I got it. I saw the world and met royal people. Now I'm back in good old San Francisco—with my heart back to those old days."[8]

Notes[edit]

  1. ^ According to IBDB the Offenbach operetta's first American production was in New York (17 Jun 1868 – 18 July 1868)

References[edit]

  1. ^ a b "The Woman's World". The Herald (Melbourne). No. 17, 208. Victoria, Australia. 9 July 1932. p. 22. Retrieved 27 March 2021 – via National Library of Australia.
  2. ^ "Emelie Melville". Daily Mercury. Vol. 64, no. 182. Queensland, Australia. 1 August 1930. p. 10. Retrieved 27 March 2021 – via National Library of Australia.
  3. ^ a b "Our Illustration". The Bega Gazette and Eden District or Southern Coast Advertiser. Vol. XX, no. 95. New South Wales, Australia. 8 December 1883. p. 1. Retrieved 27 March 2021 – via National Library of Australia.
  4. ^ "Divorced". The Bulletin. Vol. 1, no. 39. 9 February 1844. Retrieved 27 March 2021 – via Trove.
  5. ^ "A Theatrical Dispute". The Argus (Melbourne). No. 11, 449. Victoria, Australia. 1 March 1883. p. 4. Retrieved 27 March 2021 – via National Library of Australia.
  6. ^ "Insolvent Court". The Australasian. Vol. XXXVI, no. 939. Victoria, Australia. 29 March 1884. p. 20. Retrieved 27 March 2021 – via National Library of Australia.
  7. ^ "Figaro". The Lorgnette. Vol. XXXV. Victoria, Australia. 29 September 1884. p. 4 (Edition 1). Retrieved 27 March 2021 – via National Library of Australia.
  8. ^ "Miss Melville, Stage Star of Old days, Dies". San Francisco Examiner. San Francisco, California. 21 May 1932. Retrieved 26 September 2022 – via Newspapers.com.

External links[edit]

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