Tempest, Dame Marie

orig. Marie Susan Etherington

born July 15, 1864, London, Eng.

died Oct. 15, 1942, London

British actress.

She began her career as an operetta singer, winning acclaim for her charming and high-spirited performances in Dorothy (1887) and touring the U.S. and Canada in the early 1890s in operettas such as The Bohemian Girl and The Pirates of Penzance. Turning to straight comedy in 1899, she appeared notably in English Nell (1900), Mrs. Dot (1908), and Hay Fever (1925).

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▪ British actress

original name  Marie Susan Etherington  

born July 15, 1864, London

died Oct. 15, 1942, London

      English actress, known as “the queen of her profession,” who had a 55-year career as a star of light opera and legitimate comedy.

      Tempest was educated on the European continent but returned to London to study voice with Manuel Garcia, the tutor of Jenny Lind. She debuted in 1885 as Fiametta in the operetta Boccaccio, but it was the title role in Dorothy (1887), which ran for 931 performances, that established her reputation. In 1890 she appeared in New York City as Kitty Carol in The Red Hussar and continued to tour the United States and Canada in such operettas as The Bohemian Girl, Pirates of Penzance, and The Fencing Master; during this period she was considered one of the few rivals of Lillian Russell. In 1895 George Edwardes bought out her American bookings so that she could return to London to star in An Artist's Model, which ran for 400 performances.

      In 1899 Tempest forsook operettas for straight comedy; in 1900 she created the role of Nell Gwynne in English Nell, followed by Peg Woffington, Becky Sharp, and Polly Eccles in Caste. These and other roles provided the opportunity to combine charm and “roguishness”—a unique quality in which she excelled. In 1908 Somerset Maugham's Mrs. Dot provided her with her finest role. After World War I she toured throughout the empire until 1922. Nöel Coward wrote the role of Judith Bliss in Hay Fever (1925) especially for her, and her popularity in Passing Brompton Road, The Cat's Cradle, and The First Mrs. Fraser continued unabated. She toured Great Britain in the latter role only one year prior to her death. In May 1935 she celebrated her stage jubilee with a benefit that was attended by the king and queen. The proceeds were donated to St. George's Hospital for use by members of the theatrical profession. She was made a Dame Commander of the Order of the British Empire in 1937.

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