Ruth Draper (December 2, 1884 â€" December 30, 1956) was an American
actress, dramatist and noted diseuse who specialized in
character-driven monologues and monodrama. Her best-known pieces
include The Italian Lesson, Three Women and Mr. Clifford, Doctors and
Diets, and A Church in Italy.Ruth Draper was born in New York City,
the youngest child of Dr. William Henry and Ruth (née Dana) Draper.
Her father, who was born in Brattleboro, Vermont, had the affluence to
support a large family with the help of several servants. Ruth
Draper's mother was the daughter of Charles Anderson Dana, editor and
publisher of The New York Sun and had married Dr. Draper in 1878 some
years after the loss of his first wife, Lucy. Her nephew, Paul Draper,
was a noted dancer and actor. Draper's second cousin was the society
architect Paul Phipps, father of British actress Joyce Grenfell
(Grenfell's career as a monologist was directly inspired by Draper).
Her nephew Raimund Sanders Draper was a heroic WWII pilot.Ruth
Draper's inspiration to become an actress came from the Polish pianist
Ignacy Jan Paderewski, a friend of her family. She made her Broadway
debut in the 1916 play A Lady's Name by Cyril Harcourt, and by 1921
was becoming well known as monologist, or more specifically diseuse,
appearing in monodramas.Thus, Draper dominated the field of
professional solo performance during the second quarter of the
twentieth century, performing with great success throughout the United
States and Europe. Draper's one-person shows differed in kind from the
majority of the early lyceum and Chautauqua solo performers coming
before her, as the monologues/monodramas she performed were original
characters as opposed to selections of published literature.
actress, dramatist and noted diseuse who specialized in
character-driven monologues and monodrama. Her best-known pieces
include The Italian Lesson, Three Women and Mr. Clifford, Doctors and
Diets, and A Church in Italy.Ruth Draper was born in New York City,
the youngest child of Dr. William Henry and Ruth (née Dana) Draper.
Her father, who was born in Brattleboro, Vermont, had the affluence to
support a large family with the help of several servants. Ruth
Draper's mother was the daughter of Charles Anderson Dana, editor and
publisher of The New York Sun and had married Dr. Draper in 1878 some
years after the loss of his first wife, Lucy. Her nephew, Paul Draper,
was a noted dancer and actor. Draper's second cousin was the society
architect Paul Phipps, father of British actress Joyce Grenfell
(Grenfell's career as a monologist was directly inspired by Draper).
Her nephew Raimund Sanders Draper was a heroic WWII pilot.Ruth
Draper's inspiration to become an actress came from the Polish pianist
Ignacy Jan Paderewski, a friend of her family. She made her Broadway
debut in the 1916 play A Lady's Name by Cyril Harcourt, and by 1921
was becoming well known as monologist, or more specifically diseuse,
appearing in monodramas.Thus, Draper dominated the field of
professional solo performance during the second quarter of the
twentieth century, performing with great success throughout the United
States and Europe. Draper's one-person shows differed in kind from the
majority of the early lyceum and Chautauqua solo performers coming
before her, as the monologues/monodramas she performed were original
characters as opposed to selections of published literature.
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