Ada Dyas facts for kids
Ada Dyas (1843-1908) was a talented Irish actress. She started her acting career in London in 1861. Ada became very famous in 1871 for her role in the play The Woman in White. This play was based on a popular novel by Wilkie Collins.
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Early Acting Life
Ada Dyas was the daughter of Mrs. Edward Dyas. Her mother was also an actress who worked in London theaters. Ada made her first appearance on a London stage in 1861. She played the part of "Prince John of Lancaster" in the play Henry IV.
Becoming Well-Known
Ada Dyas became quite popular while touring with "Miss Marie Wilton's London Comedy Company". She played the character "Esther Eccles" in a play called Caste. In 1871, she was part of the first cast of Wilkie Collins's The Woman in White. This play opened at the Olympic Theatre. Ada played two different characters in it: "Laura Fairlie" and "Anne Caherick". In 1873, she performed at the Vaudeville Theater.
Acting in America
Ada Dyas first performed in America in 1872. She worked with Augustin Daly at the Fifth Avenue Theatre in New York. Her first American play was Man and Wife. This play was also based on a Wilkie Collins novel.
Working with Augustin Daly
Augustin Daly was a very strict theater manager. He had strong rules for his actors. For example, actors could not leave New York City without his permission. They also could not talk to visitors backstage. Ada Dyas did not like these rules. She decided to leave Daly's company and join another theater group called Wallack's.
Success at Wallack's
At Wallack's theater, Ada Dyas had many successful roles. Some of her most famous characters included Kate Hardcastle and Lady Teazle. She also played Lady Gay Spanker and Lydia Languish. Her role as Claire Ffolliott in Boucicault's play The Shaughraun was especially popular. After leaving Wallack's, she joined the Madison Square Company.
Albert Ellery Berg, a writer, praised Ada Dyas's acting style. He said she had a "crisp, bright style" and used her intelligence well in her performances.
Later Career and Legacy
Ada Dyas toured as Mrs. Ralston in Jim the Penman. She also played Mrs. Seabrooke in Captain Swift. In 1892, she took on the role of Goneril in King Lear. This was a famous play by William Shakespeare. She performed it with Sir Henry Irving at the London Lyceum theater.
Her performance in The Shaughraun was so memorable that it was mentioned in a famous novel. The author Edith Wharton included it in her 1920 book The Age of Innocence.
Ada Dyas passed away in Seaton, England, in 1908.
