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Rachel
Rachel [née Elisa Felix] (1820–58), actress. Usually considered the greatest of French classical tragediennes, she made her American debut in 1855 as Camille in Corneille's Horace. The Albion reported, “There came in a severe classic figure, a polychrome statue, gliding past the columns, and breathing rather than articulating. . . . So deep, vibrant and magnetic were the first tones of [her] voice that they sent a thrill through the vast assembly, a thrill which at once opened communication between the genius of Rachel and her new hearers.” On later evenings she presented her Phèdre, Adrienne Lecouvreur, and Andromaque, among others. Apparently she caught a cold that aggravated her tubercular condition, and her last performance was in Charleston, where she was barely able to perform. She then sailed for France, where she died just over two years afterward. Biography: Rachel, Joanna Richardson, 1956.
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Cite this article
Gerald Bordman and Thomas S. Hischak. "Rachel." The Oxford Companion to American Theatre. 2004. Encyclopedia.com. 1 Jun. 2012 <http://www.encyclopedia.com>. Gerald Bordman and Thomas S. Hischak. "Rachel." The Oxford Companion to American Theatre. 2004. Encyclopedia.com. (June 1, 2012). http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O149-Rachel.html Gerald Bordman and Thomas S. Hischak. "Rachel." The Oxford Companion to American Theatre. 2004. Retrieved June 01, 2012 from Encyclopedia.com: http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O149-Rachel.html |
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