Frank Wyatt (7 November 1852 – 5 October 1926) was an English actor, singer, Actor-manager and playwright.
After beginning his career as an illustrator and painter, in 1877 Wyatt began a stage career in comedy, Victorian burlesque, pantomime and operetta. In 1884 he had success in a Shakespeare role in Henry Irving's company, and in 1885 he created the role of Ravennes in the comic opera Erminie, which went on to become an international sensation. In this production he met Violet Melnotte, who also appeared in Erminie and who managed the theatre where it premiered; they married in 1886.
In his more than two-decade career on stage Wyatt is best remembered for his roles with the D'Oyly Carte Opera Company from 1889 to 1891, and in particular for creating the role of the Duke of Plaza-Toro in Gilbert and Sullivan's hit comic opera The Gondoliers. Wyatt continued to perform in comic operas and comedies until about 1900. From the 1890s Wyatt and his wife owned and managed the Trafalgar Square Theatre, known after 1895 as the Duke of York's Theatre. He also wrote plays and a grand opera.
In 1877 Wyatt began a stage career in a one-line part in the farce On Bail by W. S. Gilbert at the Criterion Theatre, where he continued to play in farces for three years under the management of Charles Wyndham. Over the next two decades, Wyatt appeared regularly before London audiences in burlesques at the Gaiety Theatre, London, and character roles in plays and operettas in various West End theatres. In 1879 he appeared with Selina Dolaro in the "melodramatic burlesque" Another Drink at the Folly Theatre, caricaturing William Rignold and dancing a can-can with Dolaro."Our Captious Critic", The Illustrated Sporting and Dramatic News, 19 July 1879, p. 441
In 1880 he played Punch in the pantomime Mother Goose and the Enchanted Beauty at Drury Lane Theatre with Arthur Roberts and Kate Santley. The Times, 28 December 1880, p. 4 In 1884 he was praised for "by far the best piece of comic character-drawing" in creating his role of Captaine Coqueluche in H. B. Farnie's adaptation of Edmond Audran's opéra bouffe The Grand Mogul, starring Florence St. John, Fred Leslie and Roberts. The Times, 19 November 1884, p. 6 Also in 1884 he had a success in a Shakespeare role in Henry Irving's company, playing Andrew Aguecheek in Twelfth Night at the Lyceum Theatre, London.
In 1885 he created the role of Ravennes in the popular comic opera Erminie, with music by Edward Jakobowski, at the Comedy Theatre in London, then under the management of Violet Melnotte, whom Wyatt married in London the following year.Stone, David. "Frank Wyatt" at Who Was Who in the D'Oyly Carte Opera Company (2006), accessed 25 April 2014Stone, David. "Violet Melnotte" at Who Was Who in the D'Oyly Carte Opera Company (2006), accessed 25 April 2014 He appeared in the 1888 burlesque of Atalanta at the Strand Theatre with Willie Warde and Tom Squire. Pall Mall Gazette 26 December 1888, p. 12
Wyatt next created the role of Baboo Currie in The Nautch Girl by Dance and Edward Solomon, playing the part from June to December 1891, when his contract with D'Oyly Carte ended. From January to July 1892 he appeared at the Lyric Theatre as Arrostino Annegato in The Mountebanks by Gilbert and Alfred Cellier. Wyatt's reviews describe his effectiveness in the songs allotted to him. Review of The Mountebanks in The Illustrated London News, 9 January 1892 He then played Woodpecker Tapping in Haste to the Wedding, a short-lived comic opera by Gilbert and George Grossmith at the Criterion Theatre. Also in 1892, he appeared in London in Ma mie Rosette, together with Jessie Bond and Courtice Pounds.Moss, Simon. "Ma Mie Rosette" at Gilbert & Sullivan, a selling exhibition of memorabilia, Archive: Other items, c20th.com website On tour, Wyatt appeared in Mam'zelle Nitouche in 1893.Stone, David. "Powis Pinder" at Who Was Who in the D'Oyly Carte Opera Company (2003) Later that year, he returned to London in a farce called A Screw Loose at the Vaudeville Theatre. The Times, 6 November 1893, p. 12 In 1896, Wyatt was seen in The Star of India at Princess's Theatre, London. The Times, 6 April 1896, p. 8 He appeared in The Mermaids and other pieces in 1897 at the Avenue Theatre. The Times, 4 October 1897, p. 8; and The Times, 18 October 1897, p. 7 His appearances became fewer after this, although he performed in new works as late as 1900 in The Gay Pretenders by George Grossmith, Jr. at the Globe Theatre. The Times, 12 November 1900, p. 13
Wyatt's half sister was Ivy Bonheur, a principal soprano with D'Oyly Carte touring companies in 1887–88, whose birth name was Eveline Medora Gunning.Moss, Simon. "The Mikado on tour", Memorabilia related to Richard D'Oyly Carte at the c20th.com websiteStone, David. "Ivy Bonheur" at Who Was Who in the D'Oyly Carte Opera Company (2007)
Wyatt died in St. Peter's Nursing Home in Streatham in 1926 at the age of 73. In his will he left £6406 6s 3d to his son Nevill. Francis Nevill Gunning, England & Wales, National Probate Calendar (Index of Wills and Administrations), 1858–1966, Ancestry.com (registration required)
D'Oyly Carte and later theatre career
Writing and theatre management
Notes
External links
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