Sybil Grey
Encyclopedia
Sybil Grey was a British
opera singer during the Victorian era
best known for creating a series of minor roles in productions by the D'Oyly Carte Opera Company
, including roles in several of the famous Gilbert and Sullivan
operas, between 1880 to 1888. Afterwards, she went on to a long West End theatre
career, appearing in both musical theatre
and plays.
in 1880 as a member of the chorus and understudy during the first London production of Gilbert and Sullivan
's The Pirates of Penzance
at the Opera Comique
, appearing in the small role of Kate for a short period in July 1880. In the company's next opera, Patience
, also at the Opera Comique
, Grey was in the chorus but may also have understudied the role of Lady Saphir. After Patience moved to the new Savoy Theatre
in November 1881, Grey also played the non-singing role of Jane in the curtain raiser Mock Turtles
by Frank Desprez
and Eaton Faning
.
Gilbert and Sullivan's Iolanthe
followed at the Savoy in November 1882. Grey created the non-singing role of Fleta, while continuing as Jane in Mock Turtles. When Mock Turtles was replaced by A Private Wire
in March 1883, Grey played Mary, the maid. Later that year, she was given the singing role of Leila in Iolanthe. She continued as both Mary and Leila until January 1884, when both operas closed. In the next Gilbert and Sullivan opera, Princess Ida
, she created the role of Sacharissa. When that opera closed, she was in the chorus of the revival of The Sorcerer
and played the minor role of First Bridesmaid in the accompanying Trial by Jury
.
Grey created the role of Peep-Bo, one of the three Little Maids, in the original production of The Mikado
, with Jessie Bond
(Pitti-Sing) and Leonora Braham
(Yum-Yum), for the show's entire run from 1885 to 1887. In an 1885 interview with the New York Daily Tribune, author W. S. Gilbert
stated that the short stature of Braham, Bond and Grey "suggested the advisability of grouping them as three Japanese school-girls" referred to in the opera as the 'three little maids'". The Theatre of April 1885 said, "Miss Sybil Grey is one of the valuable recruits above alluded to. She has a pretty voice, her intonation is correct and her appearance attractive."
After this long engagement, Grey withdrew from the D'Oyly Carte Opera Company. From December 1887, she had roles in two musical burlesque by composer Meyer Lutz
at the Gaiety Theatre
in London. The first was as Zillah in Miss Esmeralda, or The Maid and the Monkey, and the second was as Vanilla in Frankenstein, or The Vampire's Victim
, with a libretto by Richard Henry
. In April 1888, she played Polly in the farce Lot 49 at a benefit for Nellie Farren
. In June 1888, she returned to the Savoy for the first revival of The Mikado, playing her old role of Peep-Bo. During this run, she took roles in two benefit performances of Gilbert's blank verse
"fairy plays". The first was Lady Amanthis in Broken Hearts
at a charity matinée at the Savoy, in a cast that included Julia Neilson
, Richard Temple and Lewis Waller
. The other was in The Wicked World
, along with George Alexander
and Lionel Brough
. In September of that year, after the Mikado revival's run ended, she again left the D'Oyly Carte company, never to return.
career. She began with Drury Lane
pantomime
s, including Babes in the Wood
, in 1888, and Beauty and the Beast, as the King of Diamonds, in 1890. In 1891, she played Lucy Morley in a farce called Our Doctors at Terry's Theatre
; Alice Ormerod in A Lancashire Sailor by Brandon Thomas
; and Lily Eaton-Belgrave in A Pantomime Rehearsal, the last two of which were at the Shaftesbury Theatre
. The following year, she starred in Crazed and Faithful James (by B. C. Stephenson
), with Ellaline Terriss
and Brandon Thomas
, both at the Court Theatre
. Among other roles, she created the part of Jane in the hit musical comedy
An Artist's Model
, in 1895. In 1898, she appeared in The Dove-Cot at the Duke of York's Theatre
, together with Leonora Braham
and starring Seymour Hicks
. She was Miss Deare in another musical comedy, Three Little Maids
, in 1902. In 1904, she played Denise in Véronique
, at the Apollo Theatre
, together with some of her old Savoy colleagues. Her last role may have been as Miao-Yao in See-See in 1906 and in tours of that musical thereafter.
In March 1930 Grey participated with Jessie Bond
and Leonora Braham
in a Gilbert and Sullivan Society reunion of the original "Three Little Maids from School".
Grey is portrayed in the 1999 film Topsy-Turvy
by Cathy Sara.
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
opera singer during the Victorian era
Victorian era
The Victorian era of British history was the period of Queen Victoria's reign from 20 June 1837 until her death on 22 January 1901. It was a long period of peace, prosperity, refined sensibilities and national self-confidence...
best known for creating a series of minor roles in productions by the D'Oyly Carte Opera Company
D'Oyly Carte Opera Company
The D'Oyly Carte Opera Company was a professional light opera company that staged Gilbert and Sullivan's Savoy operas. The company performed nearly year-round in the UK and sometimes toured in Europe, North America and elsewhere, from the 1870s until it closed in 1982. It was revived in 1988 and...
, including roles in several of the famous Gilbert and Sullivan
Gilbert and Sullivan
Gilbert and Sullivan refers to the Victorian-era theatrical partnership of the librettist W. S. Gilbert and the composer Arthur Sullivan . The two men collaborated on fourteen comic operas between 1871 and 1896, of which H.M.S...
operas, between 1880 to 1888. Afterwards, she went on to a long West End theatre
West End theatre
West End theatre is a popular term for mainstream professional theatre staged in the large theatres of London's 'Theatreland', the West End. Along with New York's Broadway theatre, West End theatre is usually considered to represent the highest level of commercial theatre in the English speaking...
career, appearing in both musical theatre
Musical theatre
Musical theatre is a form of theatre combining songs, spoken dialogue, acting, and dance. The emotional content of the piece – humor, pathos, love, anger – as well as the story itself, is communicated through the words, music, movement and technical aspects of the entertainment as an...
and plays.
Early life and career
Grey began her stage career with the D'Oyly Carte Opera CompanyD'Oyly Carte Opera Company
The D'Oyly Carte Opera Company was a professional light opera company that staged Gilbert and Sullivan's Savoy operas. The company performed nearly year-round in the UK and sometimes toured in Europe, North America and elsewhere, from the 1870s until it closed in 1982. It was revived in 1988 and...
in 1880 as a member of the chorus and understudy during the first London production of Gilbert and Sullivan
Gilbert and Sullivan
Gilbert and Sullivan refers to the Victorian-era theatrical partnership of the librettist W. S. Gilbert and the composer Arthur Sullivan . The two men collaborated on fourteen comic operas between 1871 and 1896, of which H.M.S...
's The Pirates of Penzance
The Pirates of Penzance
The Pirates of Penzance; or, The Slave of Duty is a comic opera in two acts, with music by Arthur Sullivan and libretto by W. S. Gilbert. The opera's official premiere was at the Fifth Avenue Theatre in New York City on 31 December 1879, where the show was well received by both audiences...
at the Opera Comique
Opera Comique
The Opera Comique was a 19th-century theatre constructed in Westminster, London, between Wych Street and Holywell Street with entrances on the East Strand. It opened in 1870 and was demolished in 1902, to make way for the construction of the Aldwych and Kingsway...
, appearing in the small role of Kate for a short period in July 1880. In the company's next opera, Patience
Patience (opera)
Patience; or, Bunthorne's Bride, is a comic opera in two acts with music by Arthur Sullivan and libretto by W. S. Gilbert. First performed at the Opera Comique, London, on 23 April 1881, it moved to the 1,292-seat Savoy Theatre on 10 October 1881, where it was the first theatrical production in the...
, also at the Opera Comique
Opera Comique
The Opera Comique was a 19th-century theatre constructed in Westminster, London, between Wych Street and Holywell Street with entrances on the East Strand. It opened in 1870 and was demolished in 1902, to make way for the construction of the Aldwych and Kingsway...
, Grey was in the chorus but may also have understudied the role of Lady Saphir. After Patience moved to the new Savoy Theatre
Savoy Theatre
The Savoy Theatre is a West End theatre located in the Strand in the City of Westminster, London, England. The theatre opened on 10 October 1881 and was built by Richard D'Oyly Carte on the site of the old Savoy Palace as a showcase for the popular series of comic operas of Gilbert and Sullivan,...
in November 1881, Grey also played the non-singing role of Jane in the curtain raiser Mock Turtles
Mock Turtles (opera)
Mock Turtles is a one-act comic opera with a libretto by Frank Desprez and music by Eaton Faning. It was first produced at the Savoy Theatre on 11 October 1881 as a curtain raiser to Patience, then from 26 November 1882 to 30 March 1883 with Iolanthe. The piece also toured from December 1881...
by Frank Desprez
Frank Desprez
Frank Desprez was an English playwright, essayist, and poet. He wrote more than twenty pieces for the theatre, as well as numerous shorter works, including his famous poem, Lasca.-Life and career:...
and Eaton Faning
Eaton Faning
Joseph Eaton Faning , known as Eaton Faning, was an English composer and teacher. The son of a music teacher, he became the organist of a church at the age of twelve. He attended the Royal Academy of Music, where his teachers included Arthur Sullivan. He was an outstanding student, winning many...
.
Gilbert and Sullivan's Iolanthe
Iolanthe
Iolanthe; or, The Peer and the Peri is a comic opera with music by Arthur Sullivan and libretto by W. S. Gilbert. It is one of the Savoy operas and is the seventh collaboration of the fourteen between Gilbert and Sullivan....
followed at the Savoy in November 1882. Grey created the non-singing role of Fleta, while continuing as Jane in Mock Turtles. When Mock Turtles was replaced by A Private Wire
A Private Wire
A Private Wire is a one-act musical "vaudeville" operetta with a libretto by Frank Desprez and Arnold Felix and music by Percy Reeve. It was first produced at the Savoy Theatre on 31 March 1883 to 1 January 1884 as a companion piece to Gilbert and Sullivan's Iolanthe...
in March 1883, Grey played Mary, the maid. Later that year, she was given the singing role of Leila in Iolanthe. She continued as both Mary and Leila until January 1884, when both operas closed. In the next Gilbert and Sullivan opera, Princess Ida
Princess Ida
Princess Ida; or, Castle Adamant is a comic opera with music by Arthur Sullivan and libretto by W. S. Gilbert. It was their eighth operatic collaboration of fourteen. Princess Ida opened at the Savoy Theatre on January 5, 1884, for a run of 246 performances...
, she created the role of Sacharissa. When that opera closed, she was in the chorus of the revival of The Sorcerer
The Sorcerer
The Sorcerer is a two-act comic opera, with a libretto by W. S. Gilbert and music by Arthur Sullivan. It was the British duo's third operatic collaboration. The plot of The Sorcerer is based on a Christmas story, An Elixir of Love, that Gilbert wrote for The Graphic magazine in 1876...
and played the minor role of First Bridesmaid in the accompanying Trial by Jury
Trial by Jury
Trial by Jury is a comic opera in one act, with music by Arthur Sullivan and libretto by W. S. Gilbert. It was first produced on 25 March 1875, at London's Royalty Theatre, where it initially ran for 131 performances and was considered a hit, receiving critical praise and outrunning its...
.
Grey created the role of Peep-Bo, one of the three Little Maids, in the original production of The Mikado
The Mikado
The Mikado; or, The Town of Titipu is a comic opera in two acts, with music by Arthur Sullivan and libretto by W. S. Gilbert, their ninth of fourteen operatic collaborations...
, with Jessie Bond
Jessie Bond
Jessie Bond was an English singer and actress best known for creating the mezzo-soprano soubrette roles in the Gilbert and Sullivan comic operas. She spent twenty years on the stage, the bulk of them with the D'Oyly Carte Opera Company.Musical from an early age, Bond began a concert singing...
(Pitti-Sing) and Leonora Braham
Leonora Braham
Leonora Braham , born Leonora Lucy Abraham, was an English opera singer and actress primarily known as the creator of principal soprano roles in the Gilbert and Sullivan comic operas....
(Yum-Yum), for the show's entire run from 1885 to 1887. In an 1885 interview with the New York Daily Tribune, author W. S. Gilbert
W. S. Gilbert
Sir William Schwenck Gilbert was an English dramatist, librettist, poet and illustrator best known for his fourteen comic operas produced in collaboration with the composer Sir Arthur Sullivan, of which the most famous include H.M.S...
stated that the short stature of Braham, Bond and Grey "suggested the advisability of grouping them as three Japanese school-girls" referred to in the opera as the 'three little maids'". The Theatre of April 1885 said, "Miss Sybil Grey is one of the valuable recruits above alluded to. She has a pretty voice, her intonation is correct and her appearance attractive."
After this long engagement, Grey withdrew from the D'Oyly Carte Opera Company. From December 1887, she had roles in two musical burlesque by composer Meyer Lutz
Meyer Lutz
Wilhelm Meyer Lutz was a German-born English composer and conductor who is best known for light music, musical theatre and burlesques of well-known works....
at the Gaiety Theatre
Gaiety Theatre, London
The Gaiety Theatre, London was a West End theatre in London, located on Aldwych at the eastern end of the Strand. The theatre was established as the Strand Musick Hall , in 1864 on the former site of the Lyceum Theatre. It was rebuilt several times, but closed from the beginning of World War II...
in London. The first was as Zillah in Miss Esmeralda, or The Maid and the Monkey, and the second was as Vanilla in Frankenstein, or The Vampire's Victim
Frankenstein, or The Vampire's Victim
Frankenstein, or The Vampire's Victim is a musical burlesque written by Richard Henry . The music was composed by Meyer Lutz...
, with a libretto by Richard Henry
Richard Henry (pseudonym)
Richard Henry is a pseudonym credited on collaborative works of authors Richard Butler and Henry Chance Newton.Works attributed to Richard Henry include Frankenstein, or The Vampire's Victim, a parody of the Mary Shelly novel Frankenstein, presented at the Gaiety Theatre, London, in 1887.-Selected...
. In April 1888, she played Polly in the farce Lot 49 at a benefit for Nellie Farren
Nellie Farren
Nellie Farren was an English actress and singer best known for her roles as the "principal boy" in musical burlesques at the Gaiety Theatre.Born into a theatrical family, Farren began acting as a child...
. In June 1888, she returned to the Savoy for the first revival of The Mikado, playing her old role of Peep-Bo. During this run, she took roles in two benefit performances of Gilbert's blank verse
Blank verse
Blank verse is poetry written in unrhymed iambic pentameter. It has been described as "probably the most common and influential form that English poetry has taken since the sixteenth century" and Paul Fussell has claimed that "about three-quarters of all English poetry is in blank verse."The first...
"fairy plays". The first was Lady Amanthis in Broken Hearts
Broken Hearts
Broken Hearts is a blank verse play by W. S. Gilbert in three acts styled "An entirely original fairy play". It opened at the Royal Court Theatre in London on 9 December 1875, running for three months, and toured the provinces in 1876...
at a charity matinée at the Savoy, in a cast that included Julia Neilson
Julia Neilson
Julia Neilson was an English actress best known for her numerous performances as Lady Blakeney in The Scarlet Pimpernel, for her roles in many tragedies and historical romances, and for her portrayal of Rosalind in a long-running production of As You Like It.After establishing her reputation in a...
, Richard Temple and Lewis Waller
Lewis Waller
William Lewis Waller was an English actor and theatre manager. His father was a civil engineer.Born in Spain, he first appeared on the London stage in 1883, at Tooles, and for some years added to his reputation as a capable actor...
. The other was in The Wicked World
The Wicked World
The Wicked World is a blank verse play by W. S. Gilbert in three acts. It opened at the Haymarket Theatre on 1873 and ran for a successful 145 performances, closing on 1873...
, along with George Alexander
George Alexander
George Alexander may refer to:*George Alexander , British actor*George Alexander , mayor of Los Angeles*George T. Alexander , US Army soldier*George W...
and Lionel Brough
Lionel Brough
Lionel Brough was a British actor and comedian. After beginning a journalistic career and performing as an amateur, he became a professional actor, performing mostly in Liverpool during the mid-1860s...
. In September of that year, after the Mikado revival's run ended, she again left the D'Oyly Carte company, never to return.
Later years
After leaving D'Oyly Carte, Grey enjoyed a long West End theatreWest End theatre
West End theatre is a popular term for mainstream professional theatre staged in the large theatres of London's 'Theatreland', the West End. Along with New York's Broadway theatre, West End theatre is usually considered to represent the highest level of commercial theatre in the English speaking...
career. She began with Drury Lane
Theatre Royal, Drury Lane
The Theatre Royal, Drury Lane is a West End theatre in Covent Garden, in the City of Westminster, a borough of London. The building faces Catherine Street and backs onto Drury Lane. The building standing today is the most recent in a line of four theatres at the same location dating back to 1663,...
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...
s, including Babes in the Wood
Babes in the Wood
Babes in the Wood is a traditional children's tale, as well as a popular pantomime subject. It has also been the name of some other unrelated works. The expression has passed into common language, referring to inexperienced innocents entering unawares into any potentially dangerous or hostile...
, in 1888, and Beauty and the Beast, as the King of Diamonds, in 1890. In 1891, she played Lucy Morley in a farce called Our Doctors at Terry's Theatre
Terry's Theatre
Terry's Theatre was a West End theatre on Strand, in the City of Westminster, London. Built in 1887, it became a cinema in 1910 before being demolished in 1923.-History:...
; Alice Ormerod in A Lancashire Sailor by Brandon Thomas
Brandon Thomas
Walter Brandon Thomas was an English actor, playwright and song writer, best known as the author of the farce Charley's Aunt....
; and Lily Eaton-Belgrave in A Pantomime Rehearsal, the last two of which were at the Shaftesbury Theatre
Shaftesbury Theatre
The Shaftesbury Theatre is a West End Theatre, located on Shaftesbury Avenue, in the London Borough of Camden.-History:The theatre was designed for the brothers Walter and Frederick Melville by Bertie Crewe and opened on 26 December 1911 with a production of The Three Musketeers, as the New...
. The following year, she starred in Crazed and Faithful James (by B. C. Stephenson
B. C. Stephenson
Benjamin Charles Stephenson or B. C. Stephenson was an English dramatist, lyricist and librettist. After beginning a career in the civil service, he started to write for the theatre, using the pen name "Bolton Rowe". He was author or co-author of several long-running shows of the Victorian theatre...
), with Ellaline Terriss
Ellaline Terriss
Ellaline Terriss, born Ellaline Lewin , was a popular English actress and singer, best known for her performances in Edwardian musical comedies...
and Brandon Thomas
Brandon Thomas
Walter Brandon Thomas was an English actor, playwright and song writer, best known as the author of the farce Charley's Aunt....
, both at the Court Theatre
Royal Court Theatre
The Royal Court Theatre is a non-commercial theatre on Sloane Square, in the Royal Borough of Kensington and Chelsea. It is noted for its contributions to modern theatre...
. Among other roles, she created the part of Jane in the hit musical comedy
Edwardian Musical Comedy
Edwardian musical comedies were British musical theatre shows from the period between the early 1890s, when the Gilbert and Sullivan operas' dominance had ended, until the rise of the American musicals by Jerome Kern, Rodgers and Hart, George Gershwin and Cole Porter following World War I.Between...
An Artist's Model
An Artist's Model
An Artist's Model is a two-act musical by Owen Hall, with lyrics by Harry Greenbank and music by Sidney Jones, with additional songs by Joseph and Mary Watson, Paul Lincke, Frederick Ross, Henry Hamilton and Leopold Wenzel. It opened at Daly's Theatre in London, produced by George Edwardes and...
, in 1895. In 1898, she appeared in The Dove-Cot at the Duke of York's Theatre
Duke of York's Theatre
The Duke of York's Theatre is a West End Theatre in St Martin's Lane, in the City of Westminster. It was built for Frank Wyatt and his wife, Violet Melnotte, who retained ownership of the theatre, until her death in 1935. It opened on 10 September 1892 as the Trafalgar Square Theatre, with Wedding...
, together with Leonora Braham
Leonora Braham
Leonora Braham , born Leonora Lucy Abraham, was an English opera singer and actress primarily known as the creator of principal soprano roles in the Gilbert and Sullivan comic operas....
and starring Seymour Hicks
Seymour Hicks
Sir Arthur Seymour Hicks , better known as Seymour Hicks, was a British actor, music hall performer, playwright, screenwriter, theatre manager and producer. He married the actress Ellaline Terriss in 1893...
. She was Miss Deare in another musical comedy, Three Little Maids
Three Little Maids
Three Little Maids is an English musical by Paul Rubens with additional songs by Percy Greenbank and Howard Talbot. The story concerns three simple curate's daughters who go to London to earn their livings serving tea in a Bond Street tea shop...
, in 1902. In 1904, she played Denise in Véronique
Véronique (operetta)
Véronique is an opéra comique or operetta in three acts composed by André Messager. The French libretto was by Georges Duval and Albert Vanloo...
, at the Apollo Theatre
Apollo Theatre
The Apollo Theatre is a Grade II listed West End theatre, on Shaftesbury Avenue in the City of Westminster. Designed by architect Lewin Sharp for owner Henry Lowenfield, and the fourth legitimate theatre to be constructed on the street, its doors opened on 21 February 1901 with the American...
, together with some of her old Savoy colleagues. Her last role may have been as Miao-Yao in See-See in 1906 and in tours of that musical thereafter.
In March 1930 Grey participated with Jessie Bond
Jessie Bond
Jessie Bond was an English singer and actress best known for creating the mezzo-soprano soubrette roles in the Gilbert and Sullivan comic operas. She spent twenty years on the stage, the bulk of them with the D'Oyly Carte Opera Company.Musical from an early age, Bond began a concert singing...
and Leonora Braham
Leonora Braham
Leonora Braham , born Leonora Lucy Abraham, was an English opera singer and actress primarily known as the creator of principal soprano roles in the Gilbert and Sullivan comic operas....
in a Gilbert and Sullivan Society reunion of the original "Three Little Maids from School".
Grey is portrayed in the 1999 film Topsy-Turvy
Topsy-Turvy
Topsy-Turvy is a 1999 musical drama film written and directed by Mike Leigh and stars Allan Corduner as Arthur Sullivan and Jim Broadbent as W. S. Gilbert, along with Timothy Spall and Lesley Manville. The story concerns the 15-month period in 1884 and 1885 leading up to the premiere of Gilbert...
by Cathy Sara.