Aldridge, Ira Frederick

Born free in a family preacher in New York , ( USA ). In the early 20's. Of the XIX century made his debut in the small Negro Theater "African Troupe" ( New York ) in the role of Rolly ("Pizarro" by R. Sheridan ); played the roles of Romeo and Hamlet (“ Romeo and Juliet ” and “Hamlet” by W. Shakespeare ). Soon the theater was defeated by racists, and Aldridge went to England, where he performed with Edmund Keane during his tour. He studied at the University of Glasgow . In 1826 he performed at the small Royal Theater in London, starring Othello and Aaron (Othello and Titus Andronic by W. Shakespeare). In 1831, he successfully played in Dublin , southern Ireland , Bati, and Edinburgh . He worked in the theaters " Covent Garden ", "Lyceum" and others. The persecution of racists forced Ira Aldridge in the 1830s. to leave England.

Deprived of the opportunity to perform in the United States, in the 1850s. made a long tour around the countries of continental Europe. In 1852, he successfully performed in Germany before the Duchess of Sax-Coburg-Gotha and the Prussian King Frederick William IV and in Budapest . In 1858 he toured in Serbia and in the Russian Empire , where he met with Fedor Tolstoy , Mikhail Schepkin and Taras Shevchenko .

After the Civil War in the United States , the actor wanted to return to his homeland, but this was prevented by a sudden death in 1867 in Poland , on the road on a tour to St. Petersburg . He was buried in the Old Evangelical Cemetery in Lodz .

Ira Aldridge is one of the most prominent interpreters of Shakespeare (the roles of Macbeth , King Lear , Richard III and others). He was the first American actor to have won worldwide fame for playing Shakespearean roles. The actor deeply revealed in his work the humanistic meaning of his tragedies. In Othello, according to many, Aldridge's best role, he showed the inner evolution of his hero; calm, plasticity, gentleness was replaced in his game by stormy, indomitable emotionality; this image personified the Negro people, who defended their human dignity. Aldridge possessed the exceptional ability of reincarnation (while he used complex makeup, which changed the color of his skin). Aldridge's fiery temperament and lively emotionality combined with precise self-control of performance.

It is believed that Aldridge was the model for the painting The Captive Slave of the English artist John Simpson.

Ira Aldridge possessed a frantic temperament. His crown role was Othello. In the final scene, he was so “heated" that foam came out of his mouth, and his eyes were filled with blood. Performers of the role of Desdemona were panicky afraid to play with him.

The famous theater-goer A.A. Stakhovich once went backstage and asked Aldridge how his tour in Moscow with L.P. Nikulina-Kositskaya - Desdemona went. Aldridge replied that she was very nervous, and added:

• Durylin S.N. Ira Aldridge. M. — L.: Art, 1940.
• A. F. Coney Regarding Tolstoy's Dramatic Works
• M.O. Mikeshin. Memories of Shevchenko
• Yunge E.F. Memories. Correspondence. Compositions. 1843-1911, Kuchkovo Field Publishing House, Moscow, 2017

• Aldridge // Brockhaus and Efron Encyclopedic Dictionary : in 86 volumes (82 volumes and 4 additional). - SPb. , 1890-1907.
• Northwestern University Library Alridge Collection