Nelly Power
Encyclopedia
Nelly Power was an English
singer, actress and performer in music hall
, burlesque
and pantomime
. Her funeral attracted three to four thousand spectators at Abney Park Cemetery
and a further great crowd at the start of the procession from her home.
, which brought her fame by the age of 15 and the offer of principal parts in pantomimes. She made her first appearance on the London stage in 1868 in the pantomime Robinson Crusoe
. She then moved to the Vaudeville Theatre
performing in a number of burlesque
plays. After a further spell in pantomime, (where, for example in 1881 she had the title role in Sindbad the Sailor, with Vesta Tilley
as Captain Tralala at Drury Lane) she achieved national fame in the music halls with an act in which she caracatured dandies with comic songs such as "La-di-la". She was the original singer of "The Boy I Love Is Up in the Gallery
" which was written for her by songwriter and composer George Ware.
Nelly Power died of pleurisy on 20 January 1887. Her grave at Abney Park Cemetery
is cared for by the theatre charity The Music Hall Guild of Great Britain and America
.
England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...
singer, actress and performer in music hall
Music hall
Music Hall is a type of British theatrical entertainment which was popular between 1850 and 1960. The term can refer to:# A particular form of variety entertainment involving a mixture of popular song, comedy and speciality acts...
, burlesque
Burlesque
Burlesque is a literary, dramatic or musical work intended to cause laughter by caricaturing the manner or spirit of serious works, or by ludicrous treatment of their subjects...
and pantomime
Pantomime
Pantomime — not to be confused with a mime artist, a theatrical performer of mime—is a musical-comedy theatrical production traditionally found in the United Kingdom, Australia, New Zealand, Canada, Jamaica, South Africa, India, Ireland, Gibraltar and Malta, and is mostly performed during the...
. Her funeral attracted three to four thousand spectators at Abney Park Cemetery
Abney Park Cemetery
Abney Park in Stoke Newington, in the London Borough of Hackney, is a historic parkland originally laid out in the early 18th century by Lady Mary Abney and Dr. Isaac Watts, and the neighbouring Hartopp family. In 1840 it became a non-denominational garden cemetery, semi-public park arboretum, and...
and a further great crowd at the start of the procession from her home.
Career
Power appeared in the music halls from the age of 8, and developed a comic style mimicking that of George LeybourneGeorge Leybourne
Joe Sanders , better known as George Leybourne, was an English music hall performer. Often nicknamed "Champagne Charlie", Leybourne is best-remembered as the lyricist for The Daring Young Man on the Flying Trapeze....
, which brought her fame by the age of 15 and the offer of principal parts in pantomimes. She made her first appearance on the London stage in 1868 in the pantomime Robinson Crusoe
Robinson Crusoe
Robinson Crusoe is a novel by Daniel Defoe that was first published in 1719. Epistolary, confessional, and didactic in form, the book is a fictional autobiography of the title character—a castaway who spends 28 years on a remote tropical island near Trinidad, encountering cannibals, captives, and...
. She then moved to the Vaudeville Theatre
Vaudeville Theatre
The Vaudeville Theatre is a West End theatre on The Strand in the City of Westminster. As the name suggests, the theatre held mostly vaudeville shows and musical revues in its early days. It opened in 1870 and was rebuilt twice, although each new building retained elements of the previous...
performing in a number of burlesque
Burlesque
Burlesque is a literary, dramatic or musical work intended to cause laughter by caricaturing the manner or spirit of serious works, or by ludicrous treatment of their subjects...
plays. After a further spell in pantomime, (where, for example in 1881 she had the title role in Sindbad the Sailor, with Vesta Tilley
Vesta Tilley
Matilda Alice Powles , was an English male impersonator. At the age of 11, she adopted the stage name Vesta Tilley becoming the most famous and well paid music hall male impersonator of her day...
as Captain Tralala at Drury Lane) she achieved national fame in the music halls with an act in which she caracatured dandies with comic songs such as "La-di-la". She was the original singer of "The Boy I Love Is Up in the Gallery
The Boy I Love Is up in the Gallery
"The Boy I Love Is Up in the Gallery" is a music hall song written for the music hall star Miss Nelly Power by George Ware in 1885, and made famous by Marie Lloyd...
" which was written for her by songwriter and composer George Ware.
Nelly Power died of pleurisy on 20 January 1887. Her grave at Abney Park Cemetery
Abney Park Cemetery
Abney Park in Stoke Newington, in the London Borough of Hackney, is a historic parkland originally laid out in the early 18th century by Lady Mary Abney and Dr. Isaac Watts, and the neighbouring Hartopp family. In 1840 it became a non-denominational garden cemetery, semi-public park arboretum, and...
is cared for by the theatre charity The Music Hall Guild of Great Britain and America
The Music Hall Guild of Great Britain and America
The Music Hall Guild of Great Britain and America is a registered theatre charity and non-profit making theatre organisation based in London and was founded by Adrian Barry in 1992...
.
External links
- Footlight Notes includes picture and obituaries