Le Gallienne, Eva

(1899-1991)

   Distinguished actress and director Eva Le Gallienne was the daughter of noted writer Richard Le Gallienne. Born in London, she trained for the stage at the Royal Academy of Dramatic Art (RADA) and made her Broadway debut in Mrs. Boltay's Daughters (1915), but toiled with little success before scoring a triumph as Julie in the American premiere of Fe-renc Molnâr's Liliom (1921), following this with another success in Molnâr's The Swan (1923). Le Gallienne's most significant achievement was founding the Civic Repertory Theatre (CRT), a bold attempt to establish the repertory system on Broadway with the goal of bringing classics of international drama to American audiences at bargain prices. Established in 1926 with the financial aid of Otto Kahn, the CRT ran for six seasons before financial strains ended the experiment, although Le Gallienne herself gave well-received performances in a range of CRT productions, including roles as Masha in Three Sisters, Viola in Twelfth Night, Sister Joanna in The Cradle Song, Elsa in the Pulitzer PRizE-winning Susan Glaspell drama Alison's House,* the White Queen in her own adaptation of Lewis Carroll's Alice in Wonderland, as well as Peter Pan and Hedda Gabler. Among those acting with the CRT were Alla Nazimova, with whom Le Gallienne had a lesbian relationship. Le Gallienne also directed many CRT productions and continued acting in New York and on tour, scoring a particular success as Lettie in Thomas Job's* Uncle Harry* (1942).

   After World War II, in partnership with Cheryl Crawford* and Margaret Webster,* Le Gallienne attempted once again to establish a New York company, the American Repertory Theatre* (ART), but it, too, failed. She continued to act until late in her life, occasionally appearing in motion pictures. Le Gallienne may have rivaled Katharine Cornell or Helen Hayes had she chosen a more commercial career, but she preferred experimenting with the classics and serious modern drama, especially the plays of Henrik Ibsen, Anton Chekhov, and George Bernard Shaw.