Samuel Phelps

Source: Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia.
This article is about the English actor. For the American politician, see Samuel S. Phelps.

Samuel Phelps

Samuel Phelps (born 13 February 1804, Plymouth Dock (now

Devonport), Plymouth, Devon, died 6 November 1878, Anson's Farm, Coopersale, near Epping, Essex) was an English actor and theatre manager. He is known for his productions of William Shakespeare's plays which were faithful to their original versions, after the derived works by Nahum Tate, Colley Cibber and David Garrick had dominated the stage for over a century.[1]

Debut

Phelps made his début as

William Charles Macready at the Theatre Royal, Drury Lane, who recognized Phelps as a potential rival and gave him little opportunity to display his talents, although Phelps did gain popularity in the roles of Captain Channel in Douglas William Jerrold's melodrama The Prisoner of War (1842), and of Lord Tresham in Robert Browning's A Blot in the 'Scutcheon
(1843).

Success

Grave of Samuel Phelps in Highgate Cemetery

It was not until the abolition of the

Sadler's Wells, some of which (like The Winter's Tale and Measure for Measure) hadn't been performed since their premieres at the Globe Theatre
.

Samuel Phelps as Cardinal Thomas Wolsey.

Achievements

Phelps' most frequently performed role was Hamlet, but he counted Macbeth, Wolsey, Leontes, and Bottom among his greatest achievements. He was generally considered the finest King Lear of his generation, returning to Shakespeare's version, which had been replaced on stage for over a hundred and fifty years by Tate's happy ending adaptation The History of King Lear, and staging the first production of the original version since the Restoration in 1845. Bell's Weekly Messenger wrote "The majesty, as well as the paternal tenderness of Lear, is preserved throughout; the grief, despair, and madness are kingly; and the business which the action inspires is heightened by the consciousness of the greatness of the mind that is suffering."

Phelps other great creation was his

Helen Faucit
was Imogen.

Sadly, Phelps' skills declined in old age so that critics no longer cared for his work in tragic plays, approving only his performances in comic roles like

Falstaff and Bottom
. But in his prime, he was the most versatile actor of his generation. A definitive biography, Samuel Phelps & the Sadler's Wells Theatre, was written by Shirley S. Allen in 1971.

Phelps was buried in a family grave (plot no.15452) on the western side of Highgate Cemetery.

References

  • Samuel Phelps and Sadler's Wells Theatre Shirley S. Allen (Wesleyan, 1971)
    ISBN 0-8195-4029-3
  1. ^ The Cambridge Guide to Theatre, Cambridge University Press, 1988
  2. ISBN 1780762933
    .
Retrieved from "https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Samuel_Phelps&oldid=1165671387"