Ira Frederick Aldridge: Shakesperian actor

Ira Frederick Aldridge was born on July 25, 1807 in New York City. His father Daniel, who was a lay preacher and straw vendor, and his mother, Lurone, were free blacks. Ira's mother died in 1818, when he was a boy. Ira attended the African Free School where he won many oratory contests. After Ira's father remarried, he ran away from home.

Ira worked on a ship and when it docked in North Carolina, a slave dealer offered to buy him for $500. The captain of the ship refused the offer. After this incident, Ira returned to New York and worked backstage at the Chatham Theatre. Aldridge received acting experience with the African Theatre group. His acting debut was as Rolla, a Peruvian in the Richard Brinsley Sheridan adaptation of August von Kotzebue's "Pizarro." Aldridge was unable to obtain major roles because he was African American, so he went to England in 1824 to pursue an acting career. Aldridge, who was 18 at this time, also studied acting in Scotland and Ireland. On October 10, 1825, Aldridge debuted at London's Royal Coburg Theatre for a six-week engagement. The first week, he played the lead role of Oroonoko in "The Revolt of Surina, or A Slave's Revenge. In the playbill, Aldridge was described as the "Tragedian of Colour, from the African Theatre, New York." During the week of October 17, he starred in Thomas Morton's "The Ethiopian, or the Quadroon of the Mango Grove." The next week he appeared in "The Libertine Defeated of African Ingratitude. In the weeks of October 31 and November 7, he played in "The Negro's Curse, or the Foulah Son," a play which was written expressly for him. During the weeks of November 14th and 41st, he played in "The Death of Christophe, King of Hayti."

"…the greatest centre of the slave trade in the United Kingdom, where only three years before he had landed as an unknown, penniless stranger. One can imagine the feelings of the pro-slavery elements at the presumption of this Negro to appear in anti-slavery plays like "Oroonoko," "The Revenge," and "The Padlock," and furthermore to see a well-known star like Vandenhoff playing his Iago and a white woman, Miss F.H. Kelly, playing his Desdemona! Such a leap in so short a time was indeed something unparalleled in theatre history, as well as a unique challenge to racial superiority."

At the close of many of his performances, Aldridge would play the guitar and sing an anti-slavery song. On final nights of his performances, he delivered addresses that focused on the injustices of slavery. In 1832, he distributed an address to the audience entitled "Willian Tell, the Swiss Patriot." Part of it read, "I risk my all upon thy power--Life--son--yea, country, too; To free my brethren, fetter'd slaves, From sinking in inglorious graves." He regularly contributed to the abolitionist movement and the Negro State Conventions.

Aldridge was famous for captivating his audiences. He became known as the African Roscius. After playing the limited number of black roles, he began to play non-black parts. The first non-black role he played before a foreign audience was Rolla. In August 1830 he played his first white European role as Captain Dirk Hatteraick in "Guy Mannering." Some of the additional plays that were added to his repertoire were "Bertram, or the Castle of St. Aldobrand," "The Merchant of Venice," "The Brigand, or Alessandro Massaroni," "Obi, or Three-fingered Jack," "The African's Vengeance," "Paul and Virginia," "The Siberian Exile," The Coronation Day of William IV," Valentine and Orson," and "Frankenstein, or the Man and Monster."

In April, 1833, Aldridge replaced the famous actor Edmund Kean as Othello at London's Covent Garden Theatre. Edmund Kean, whose signature role was Othello, died after collapsing on stage on March 25. Of Aldridge's performance as Othello, Marshall and Stock wrote in their biography:

"with characteristic courage, determination and dignity, Aldridge steps on to the stage of this great theatre, taking up the challenge….Those two days, 10th and 12, April 1833, will for ever be red-letter days in the history of world theatre and human progress, for in those days a lone Negro from an enslaved people challenged the great white actors in the very heart of their Empire, in their own Theatre Royal, Covent Garden, in one of the greatest roles conceived by Shakespeare."

After his performance at covent Garden, Aldridge toured the provinces for 19 years. He added to his repertoire, "The Black Doctor--A Romantic Drama in Four Acts," "Richard III," Titus Andronicus," and "Le Docteur Noir, which Aldridge adapted. After the tour, he performaed at the Royal Shakespeare Theatre in Stratford-upon-Avon and London's Brittannia Theatre.

In July 1852, Aldridge began a continental tour. Some of the places he performed were Vienna, Berlin, Prague, Budapest, Poland, and Munich. He received much praise and admiration from his audiences. He returned to London in 1855 and performed in English theaters for three years. In November 1858, Aldridge traveled to Russia, where he primarily toured during the last years of his career. He was the first American actor to perform in Croatia and Serbia. Among the many honors and awards he received were membership in the Prussian Academy of Arts and Sciences; receipt of the Prussian Gold Medal of the First Class for the Academy; Switzerland's White Cross knighthood in theRoyal Saxon Ernestinischen House Order (the first actor to be knighted); receipt of the Berdienst Medal of the Order in Gold; and membership in the National Dramatic Conservatoire of Hungary.

Aldridge was married twice. In 1825, he married Margaret Gill of England, who died in 1864 and in 1865 he married Countess Amanda von Brandt of Sweden. He had two sons and three daughters. In 1863, he became a naturalized British subject of Queen Victoria. Ira Aldridge died on August 7, 1867 and was buried in Lodz, Poland's Evangelical Cemetery with State Honors. His grave is a national shrine that is cared for by Society of Polish Artists of the Film and Theatre. The name, Ira Aldridge, is inscribed at the Shakespeare Memorial Theatre, Stratford-upon-Avon.