Ruth Draper

Ruth Draper

infobox actress



birthdate=birth date|1884|12|2
deathdate=death date and age|1956|12|30|1884|12|2
occupation=Stage actress

Ruth Draper (born December 2 1884, New York City - died December 30 1956, New York, New York) was an American dramatist. She specialized in character-driven monologues and monodrama.

Her best known pieces include "The Italian Lesson", "Three Women and Mr. Clifford", "Doctors and Diets", and "A Church in Italy".

She had many relationships in Italy, in fact, and was a strong opponent of fascism. In this period she was the partner of Lauro De Bosis, a young italian poet and writer who died after flying over Rome for throwing many thousands of leaflets against Mussolini's party.

Her biography is among the other collected by the anglo-italian writer Iris Origo in her work containing also the biographies of Ignazio Silone, Gaetano Salvemini, and Lauro De Bosis ["A Need to Testify" (1984) ] .

Such theatre legends as George Bernard Shaw, Thornton Wilder, John Gielgud, Katharine Hepburn, Maurice Chevalier, Laurence Olivier, and Uta Hagen were among those dazzled by her artistry and talent, as were Henry James, Henry Adams, and Edith Wharton.

Draper died in 1956, aged 72, just hours after giving a performance on Broadway.

Family

Her nephew, Paul Draper, was a noted dancer and actor. Her second cousin was the society architect Paul Phipps (father of British actress Joyce Grenfell).

Recordings

Recordings of Draper's monologues, which are still available on compact disc, have influenced many contemporary writers and performers, including Lily Tomlin, Mike Nichols, Julie Harris, Simon Callow, Emma Thompson, Charles Busch, David Mamet, Julia Sweeney and John Lithgow.

Notes

External links

*ibdb|8539
*imdb|1812608
* [http://www.drapermonologues.com/biography.html Biography from drapermonoglogues.com]
* [http://www.drapermonologues.com/legacy.html Legacy from drapermonologues.com]

Further reading

*Young, Jordan R. (1989). "Acting Solo: The Art of One-Person Shows". Beverly Hills: Past Times Publishing Co.
*Catron, Louis E. (2000). "The Power of One: The Solo Play for Playwrights, Actors, and Directors." Portsmouth, N.H: Heinemann.
*Origo, Iris (1984) "A Need of Testify".


Wikimedia Foundation. 2010.

Игры ⚽ Нужен реферат?

Look at other dictionaries:

  • Draper (surname) — Draper is a surname, taken from the occupation (a draper was a merchant in cloth or dry goods). It is the 1365th most popular name in the USA, with approximately 22,383 and may refer to: Albert Draper, Canadian politician Blake A. Draper,… …   Wikipedia

  • Draper, Ruth — born Dec. 2, 1884, New York, N.Y., U.S. died Dec. 30, 1956, New York City U.S. monologist. She began her career by writing dramatic sketches about people she had observed and performing them at parties. She made her New York debut (1917) in a… …   Universalium

  • Draper — /dray peuhr/, n. 1. Henry, 1837 82, U.S. astronomer. 2. his father, John William, 1811 82, U.S. chemist, physiologist, historian, and writer; born in England. 3. Ruth, 1884 1956, U.S. diseuse and writer of character sketches. * * * (as used in… …   Universalium

  • ruth — /roohth/, n. 1. pity or compassion. 2. sorrow or grief. 3. self reproach; contrition; remorse. [1125 75; ME ruthe, reuthe. See RUE1, TH1] Syn. 1. mercy, sympathy. Ant. 1. cruelty. * * * (as used in expressions) Benedict Ruth Ruth Fulton Crawford… …   Universalium

  • Ruth — /roohth/, n. 1. a Moabite woman who married Boaz and became an ancestor of David: the daughter in law of Naomi. 2. a book of the Bible bearing her name. 3. a female given name. /roohth/, n. George Herman ( Babe ), 1895 1948, U.S. baseball player …   Universalium

  • draper — /dray peuhr/, n. Brit. 1. a dealer in cloth; a retail merchant or clerk who sells piece goods. 2. a retail merchant or clerk who sells clothing and dry goods. [1325 75; ME < AF; OF drapier, equiv. to drap cloth + ier IER2; see ER2] * * * (as used …   Universalium

  • Margaret Draper — in the 1940 s Born Margaret Ruth Draper November 20, 1916(1916 11 20) Spanish Fork, Utah …   Wikipedia

  • Paul Draper (dancer) — Paul Draper, a nephew of Ruth Draper, was a famous American dancer. He was born in Florence, Italy to a socially prominent New York family which was less than pleased at his choice of dance as a vocation. Draper taught dancing at an Arthur Murray …   Wikipedia

  • Charles Stark Draper — Born October 2, 1901(1901 10 02) Died …   Wikipedia

  • Mary Seney Sheldon — Engagement portrait for the 18 year old Mary Seney, later Mrs. Sheldon, painted by G.P.A. Healy in 1881 Mary R. Seney Sheldon (July 3, 1863 June 16, 1913) was the first female president of the New York Philharmonic. She is credited with… …   Wikipedia

Share the article and excerpts

Direct link
Do a right-click on the link above
and select “Copy Link”