Madame Céleste

Madame Céleste or Madame Céline Céleste-Elliott (16 August 1815? Paris – 12 February 1882, Paris) was a French dancer and actress who enjoyed great success on the London stage and during her four tours of America. She was also later involved in theatrical management. On her retirement from the stage she returned to Paris where she died in 1882.

As a little girl Céleste showed early talent and was enrolled at the Paris conservatory as a pupil, performing with Francois-Joseph Talma. In 1827 she made her debut at the Bowery theatre, New York, dancing a pas seul with a Parisian dance troupe, and also appearing in ballets at smaller venues on the east coast. While in America she married Henry Elliott of Baltimore, by whom in 1829 she had a daughter. Elliott died soon after the marriage.

Travelling to England, she appeared first at Liverpool as Fenella in Masaniello in the opera by Auber: the part of Fenella, mute sister of the opera's hero, allowed Celeste to display her considerable talent as a mime artist, and also disguised her poor command of English.

Moving from the provinces into London she had her first great success there at Easter 1831 in a topical play called The French Spy, in which she played a travesty role as Hamet, an "Arab Boy" (actually a French girl in disguise). The play was based on the recent French takeover of Algiers and the part was created especially for Céleste by J.T. Haines, the first of several playwrights to create roles capitalizing on her strengths in expressive movement.

After appearing both in continental Europe and Ireland, in 1834 she again toured America for three years, where she aroused great enthusiasm and made a small fortune. She became famous there for her pantomimic roles, appearing in The Wizard Skiff, or, The Tongueless Pirate Boy; an adaptation of a Fenimore Cooper novel, The Wept of the Wish-Ton-Wish; and The Dumb Brigand.

It is said that her American admirers carried her on their shoulders and took the horses out of her carriage in order to pull it themselves. It is even said that President Andrew Jackson introduced her to his cabinet as an adopted citizen of the Union.

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