ย ย ย ย ย ย ย ย ย ย ย ย ย ๐๐ฅ๐ ๐๐๐๐ฅ๐๐๐๐ (1807-1867)
๐๐ฟ๐ฎ ๐๐ฟ๐ฒ๐ฑ๐ฒ๐ฟ๐ถ๐ฐ๐ธ ๐๐น๐ฑ๐ฟ๐ถ๐ฑ๐ด๐ฒ ๐๐ฎ๐ ๐๐ต๐ฒ ๐ณ๐ถ๐ฟ๐๐ ๐๐ณ๐ฟ๐ถ๐ฐ๐ฎ๐ป ๐๐บ๐ฒ๐ฟ๐ถ๐ฐ๐ฎ๐ป ๐ฎ๐ฐ๐๐ผ๐ฟ ๐๐ผ ๐ฎ๐ฐ๐ต๐ถ๐ฒ๐๐ฒ ๐๐๐ฐ๐ฐ๐ฒ๐๐ ๐ผ๐ป ๐๐ต๐ฒ ๐ถ๐ป๐๐ฒ๐ฟ๐ป๐ฎ๐๐ถ๐ผ๐ป๐ฎ๐น ๐๐๐ฎ๐ด๐ฒ. ๐๐ฒ ๐ฎ๐น๐๐ผ ๐ฝ๐๐๐ต๐ฒ๐ฑ ๐๐ผ๐ฐ๐ถ๐ฎ๐น ๐ฏ๐ผ๐๐ป๐ฑ๐ฎ๐ฟ๐ถ๐ฒ๐ ๐ฏ๐ ๐ฝ๐น๐ฎ๐๐ถ๐ป๐ด ๐ผ๐ฝ๐ฝ๐ผ๐๐ถ๐๐ฒ ๐๐ต๐ถ๐๐ฒ ๐ฎ๐ฐ๐๐ฟ๐ฒ๐๐๐ฒ๐ ๐ถ๐ป ๐๐ป๐ด๐น๐ฎ๐ป๐ฑ ๐ฎ๐ป๐ฑ ๐ฏ๐ฒ๐ฐ๐ผ๐บ๐ถ๐ป๐ด ๐ธ๐ป๐ผ๐๐ป ๐ฎ๐ ๐๐ต๐ฒ ๐ฝ๐ฟ๐ฒ๐ฒ๐บ๐ถ๐ป๐ฒ๐ป๐ ๐ฆ๐ต๐ฎ๐ธ๐ฒ๐๐ฝ๐ฒ๐ฎ๐ฟ๐ฒ๐ฎ๐ป ๐ฎ๐ฐ๐๐ผ๐ฟ ๐ฎ๐ป๐ฑ ๐๐ฟ๐ฎ๐ด๐ฒ๐ฑ๐ถ๐ฎ๐ป ๐ผ๐ณ ๐๐ต๐ฒ 19๐๐ต ๐๐ฒ๐ป๐๐๐ฟ๐.
Ira Frederick Aldridge was born in New York City, New York on July 24, 1807 to free African Reverend Daniel and Lurona Aldridge. Although his parents encouraged him to become a pastor, he studied classical education at the African Free School in New York where he was first exposed to the performance arts. While there he became impressed with acting and by age 15 was associating with professional black actors in the city. They encouraged Aldridge to join the prestigious African Grove Theatre, an all-African theatre troupe founded by William Henry Brown and James Hewlett in 1821. He apprenticed under Hewlett, the first African American Shakespearean actor. Though Aldridge was gainfully employed as an actor in the 1820s, he felt that the United States was not a hospitable place for theatrical performers. Many whites resented the claim to cultural equality that they saw in African performances of Shakespeare and other European-authored texts. Realizing this, Aldridge emigrated to Europe in 1824 as the valet for British-American actor James William Wallack.
Aldridge eventually moved to Glasgow, Scotland and began studies at the University of Glasgow, where he enhanced his voice and dramatic skills in theatre. He moved to England and made his debut in London in 1825 as Othello at the Theatre Royal Covent Garden, a role he would remain associated with until his death. The critic reviews gave Aldridge the name Roscius (the celebrated Roman actor of tragedy and comedy). Aldridge embraced it and began using the stage name โThe African Roscius.โ He even created the myth that he was the descendant of a Senegalese Prince whose family was forced to escape to the United States to save their lives. This deception erased Aldridgeโs American upbringing and cast him as an exotic and almost magical being.
Throughout the mid-1820s to 1860 Ira Aldridge slowly forged a remarkable career. He performed in London, Liverpool, Edinburgh, Bath, and Bristol in King Lear, Othello, Macbeth, and The Merchant of Venice. He also freely adapted classical plays, changing characters, eliminating scenes and installing new ones, even from other plays. In 1852 he embarked on a series of continental tours that intermittently would last until the end of his life. He performed his full repertoire in Prussia, Germany, Austria, Switzerland, Hungary, and Poland. Some of the honors he received include the Prussian Gold Medal for Arts and Sciences from King Frederick, the Golden Cross of Leopold from the Czar of Russia, and the Maltese Cross from Berne, Switzerland.
Aldridge died on August 7, 1867 while on tour in Lodz, Poland. He was 60 at the time of his death. Aldridge had been married twice and left behind several children including a daughter named Luranah who would, in her own right, go on to become a well-known actress and opera singer. There is a memorial plaque at the Royal Shakespeare Theatre in Stafford-upon-Avon, in honor of his contributions to the performing arts. In 2014 a second plaque was unveiled in Lodz, Poland to honor his memory and legacy
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