Agnes Booth
| Agnes Booth | |
|---|---|
Agnes Booth
|
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| Born |
October 4, 1843 Sydney, New South Wales |
| Died | January 2, 1910 (aged 66) Brookline, MA |
| Other names | Marian Agnes Land Rookes |
| Occupation | Actress |
Agnes Booth (October 4, 1843 – January 2, 1910), born Marian Agnes Land Rookes, was an Australian-born American actress and in-law of Junius Brutus Booth, John Wilkes Booth, and Edwin Booth.
By her own account she was born in Sydney, New South Wales, but migrated to California, United States with her family in 1858 at the age of about 14. However, as biographer Pat M. Ryan has noted, there are no records of her birth or her family's residence in Australia.
She made her US debut in early 1858 as Agnes Land, performing with her sister Belle at Maguire's Opera House, San Francisco, attracting attention and gaining recognition and managing a season of the Metropolitan theatre in Detroit. In 1861 she married actor Harry Perry in San Francisco but was widowed in 1863.In 1865 she moved to New York where she appeared at the Winter Garden (demolished in 1867). In 1866, she joined the Boston Theatre Company, of which she was a member for several years, performing as Agnes Perry. In 1867, she was married to Junius Brutus Booth, Jr. and she performed as Agnes Booth thereafter.
At the height of her popularity reviews of her performances were effusive. In 1874, the News described her as "the most finished and effective emotional actress at present on the metropolitan stage." In 1889, Belford's Magazine wrote of another "great triumph" by Agnes Booth in Captain Swift. "For painstaking attention to detail, nicety of intonation, and powerful expression, Agnes Booth is in the front rank of leading ladies. We have seen her in many society dramas, and in each she has shown a charming appreciation of all the requirements... The mingled expression of shame, suffering and maternal love in Agnes Booth's face during [one] scene is one not soon to be forgotten.
In 1878 she played Madeleine Renaud in the Union Square Theatre's production of "A Celebrated Case," the program noting that she had "kindly undertaken this part in order to strengthen the cast." From 1881 to 1891, she was with the Madison Square Company. After 1891, she went to Europe, then returned to the United States where she resided in the artist community of New Rochelle, New York and resumed her work on Broadway in nearby New York City. Booth gained fame for her role in the melodrama The Sporting Duchess (The Derby Winner by Cecil Raleigh) along with fellow actress and New Rochelle neighbor Cora Tanner.
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