Beatrice Cameron
Beatrice Cameron | |
---|---|
Born | Susan Hegeman 1868 Troy, New York, United States |
Died | (aged 72) New London, Connecticut, United States |
Occupation | Actress |
Years active | 1886–1898 |
Spouse | Richard Mansfield (1892–1907) |
Beatrice Cameron (born Susan Hegeman, 1868 – July 12, 1940) was an American stage actress. She was the leading lady for the company of actor Richard Mansfield, whom she married in 1892. She retired from acting in 1898.
Career
Cameron's first acting experience was in The Midnight Marriage with Cora Urquhart Brown-Potter at the Madison Square Theatre on Broadway. She was a spectator at a rehearsal when a member of the cast in a minor role fell ill. She volunteered to take over the part, learning both lines and dance steps by the following evening.[1] After performing with the company of Robert B. Mantell, in 1886 she joined the company of Richard Mansfield. Her first role with the company was in the comedy Prince Karl. In 1887 she took the part of Agnes Carew in the Broadway production of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde, a role that she would reprise in London and many other cities.[2] While in London, she first appeared in Lesbia and Richard III. Upon returning to the United States, she became the first actress to portray Nora in A Doll's House on Broadway, when Henrik Ibsen's controversial play opened at Palmer's Theatre in December 1889.[3] Cameron performed in 13 other plays with Mansfield's company.[2]
She officially retired from acting on February 12, 1898, following a performance at the Grand Opera House in Chicago. She did appear once post-retirement, in a final performance as Raina in George Bernard Shaw's play Arms and the Man, at the Garden Theatre on January 8, 1900.[2]
Personal life
Cameron was born Susan Hegeman in
Their only child, George Gibbs Mansfield, was born on August 8, 1898.
In 1920, Cameron engaged in relief work for victims of the Armenian genocide in Urfa, Turkey, when the American humanitarian compounds housing Armenian orphans came under siege. There she came under Turkish fire. Soon afterwards, she did relief work with the refugees in Jerusalem. She recited Shakespeare to the suffering and hungry refugees.[7] She subsequently participated in relief efforts in Syria and Czechoslovakia, supported women's suffrage and was active in the League of Women Voters.[3]
Cameron donated her late husband's costumes to the
References
- ^ "Our Gallery of Players: LVII. Miss Beatrice Cameron". The Illustrated American. Vol. 11, no. 128. July 30, 1892. p. 509.
- ^ OCLC 1513656.
- ^ a b c "Mrs. Richard Mansfield, 72, Famed Actress, Passes Away; Formerly Active in Relief Work". The New London Evening Day. July 13, 1940. p. 6.
- ^ OCLC 1513656.
- ^ "Beatrice Cameron Injured". The New York Times. Vol. 44, no. 13, 571. February 19, 1895. p. 3.
- ^ "Richard Mansfield Dies in Texas Camp". The New York Times. April 5, 1918. p. 15.
- ^ "Shakespeare in Lieu of Stew", New Near East, November 1920, pp. 23–24.
External links
- Beatrice Cameron at the Internet Broadway Database
- Beatrice Cameron at NYPL Digital Gallery
- Şanlıurfa Mücadele Albümü (Sanliurfa Struggle Album) – Includes photos of Cameron visiting Şanlıurfa Province in Turkey (see page 89)
- Mrs. Mansfield recorded January 5 1929 reciting a poem and speaking on the Fox Movietone cameras(Univ of South Carolina)