Rose McClendon

Rose McClendon
Rose McClendon as Serena in Porgy (1927)
Born	Rosalie Virginia Scott (1884-08-27)August 27, 1884 New York, New York
Died	July 12, 1936(1936-07-12) (aged 51) New York, New York
Resting place	Mount Hope Cemetery (Hastings-on-Hudson)
Spouse(s)	Henry Pruden McClendon (married 1904–1936)

Rose McClendon (August 27, 1884 – July 12, 1936) was a leading African-American Broadway actress of the 1920s. A founder of the Negro People's Theatre, she guided the creation of the Federal Theatre Project's African American theatre units nationwide and briefly co-directed the New York Negro Theater Unit.

Rose McClendon was born as Rosalie Virginia Scott in Greenville, South Carolina, and as a child relocated to New York City. She started acting in church plays in her youth. She became a professional actress in her thirties, after winning a scholarship to the American Academy of Dramatic Art.

At age 20 she was married to Dr. Henry Pruden McClendon, a chiropractor.

Her first notable role came in Deep River, a "native opera with jazz", in 1926. In addition to acting, she also directed several plays at the Harlem Experimental Theatre. She appeared in the 1927 Pulitzer Prize-winning play In Abraham's Bosom by Paul Green. In 1931, she was in another Paul Green play on Broadway, The House of Connelly, which was the first production by the Group Theatre, directed by Lee Strasberg.

McClendon was a contemporary of Paul Robeson, Ethel Barrymore, Lynn Fontanne and Langston Hughes, who created a character for her in his 1935 play, Mulatto.

As a showcase for McClendon, Countee Cullen adapted Euripides' tragedy Medea, working with producer John Houseman, composer Virgil Thomson and production designer Chick Austin. Although the sets and costumes had been ready for months, by the end of 1934 McClendon had fallen ill and the project was never realized.