476:"The manner in which first the crown and then the wig of Mr Fred Vokes as King Arthur persisted in tumbling off while that monarch indulged in unusual gyrations excited tumultuous laughter, and if there could be anything funnier than Mr Fred Vokes’ 'split' dance it was his step dance, Lancashire clogs, Cornish reels, transatlantic walk-rounds, cellar flaps and breakdowns, college hornpipes and Irish jigs. Nothing in the way of dances came amiss to the airy monarch whose legs and arms seemed to spin round on pivots and who seemed at once to stimulate the actions of the cockchafer and the grasshopper.
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423:, making such comments as: "They were on stage far too long", "They are sublimely indifferent as to whether the story of Cinderella be a Sanskrit myth or a Greek fable", "If they want to retain their hold on the public, they should get someone to concoct for them new modes". Not being the draw they had once been, the Vokes Family discovered the pantomime was in debt and refused to drop their salaries which
652:
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22:
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He was well assisted by Mr. Fawdon Vokes as the court fool who had apparently danced himself out of his mind in his infancy and had lived on tarantula spiders ever since. All the Misses Vokes (Victoria, Jessie and Rosina), fascinated in their attire, ravishing as to their back hair and amazing in
337:
in
January 1883, returning to England (again without brother Fred) in June 1883. Jessie Vokes’s clever recitations and dancing were appreciated, but she was not so prominent in the cast as her siblings Victoria and Fred, who were especially happy in their rendering of the tower scene from
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94:
Jessie Vokes, the eldest of the sisters, was educated for the stage from an early age, being tutored in acting by Mr. Chadwick and in dancing, in which she excelled, by Mr. Flexmore. When she was only 4 years old she appeared at the
480:
their agility, were fully equal to the occasion. When they didn’t dance they sang and danced simultaneously and then all the
Vokeses jumped on one another's backs and careered – so it seemed – into immeasurable space.’
296:
in New York on 15 April 1872 and in which Jessie Vokes played
Lucinda Scrubbs. The family then embarked on a six-month tour of the United States before returning to Britain where in October 1872 they performed
618:
79:
theatres of 1870s London and in the United States. Their father, Frederick
Strafford Thwaites Vokes (1816–1890), was a theatrical costumier and wigmaker who owned a shop at 19 Henrietta Street,
281:, she began her career as ”The Vokes Children,” which was afterward changed to ”The Vokes Family,” at the Operetta House in Edinburgh. Their success was pronounced and continuous.
427:
the manager could not meet, and the production closed owing ÂŁ36,000 in
February 1879 putting all involved out of work. The family returned to Drury Lane in 1879 in the pantomime
146:, and by their agility and humour made the name well known to English and American theatre-goers. They made their début on Christmas night in 1861 at Howard's Operetta House in
672:
952:
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England & Wales, National
Probate Calendar (Index of Wills and Administrations), 1858–1995 for Jessie Catherine Biddulph Vokes, 1884 – Ancestry.com
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760:
204:
it became unsafe to remain and they left the city with just a few hours notice. Back in London she appeared with the rest of the Vokes Family in
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397:(1874), in which Jessie Vokes played the Genius of the Lamp in which role "her grace and ability as a dancer have in no degree diminished.";
982:
176:
873:
Brompton, London, England, Cemetery
Registers, 1840–2012 for Jessie Catherine Biddulph Vokes, 1884 Jul 24-1884 Nov 17 – Ancestry.com
667:
942:
588:
859:
England & Wales, Civil
Registration Death Index, 1837–1915 for Jessie Catherine B Vokes, 1884, Q3-Jul–Aug–Sep- Ancestry.com
947:
439:
who had dominated the pantomime at Drury Lane for more than a decade but who had never updated their routines. The new manager
305:
and remained in
America for the next year and nine months before returning to England. Their next season in America was at the
967:
957:
484:
The Vokes family through their mother's brother, actor
William F. Wood (1799–1855), were first cousins of American actress
365:
For about ten years (with the exception of 1873, when they were touring abroad) they were regulars in the annual Christmas
71:
made up of three sisters, a brother and "foster brother" (actually actor Walter Fawdon (1844–1904) who changed his name to
781:
721:
An Illustrated History of British Theatre and Performance: Volume Two – From the industrial Revolution to the Digital Age
444:
605:
1861 England Census for Jessie Vokes: Surrey, Southwark St George the Martyr, Borough Road, District 18 – Ancestry.com
197:
443:
found the Vokes Family to be too demanding, while they considered him a tyrant. For Christmas 1880 the family were at
357:
266:
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151:
887:
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370:
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49:
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330:
167:
155:
619:
Jessie Catherine Biddulph Vokes in the England, Select Births and Christenings, 1538–1975 – Ancestry.com
237:
196:
on 27 February 1869 at the Standard Theatre in London. They made their Paris debut in August 1870 at the
48:
of entertainers. For more than ten years they were the central attraction at the annual pantomime at the
992:
937:
932:
306:
293:
407:
329:; the family returned to the US in Autumn 1882. They made their last appearance in New York at the
201:
536:
resulted in the break up of the family troupe. She never married and in her will left ÂŁ3,034 15s.
765:
485:
249:
792:
166:, and they traveled through a great part of the civilized world. Early in their career, at the
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One or more of the preceding sentences incorporates text from a publication now in the
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344:, or as Rosina Vokes, who was regarded by the young men as the flower of the family.
926:
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815:
The Golden Age of Pantomime: Slapstick, Spectacle and Subversion in Victorian England
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419:(1878). The critics were not kind concerning the contribution of the Vokes Family to
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171:
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First as the "Vokes Children" and later the "Vokes Family" they began to perform at
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Tom Thumb the Great; or, Harlequin King Arthur and the Knights of the Round Table
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64:
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in 1862 when they were billed as 'The Five Little Vokes'. They appeared at the
636:
1851 England Census for Jessie Vokes: Surrey, Lambeth, Brixton – Ancestry.com
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Volumes 1–22 for Jessie Catherine Biddulph Vokes, Supplement (Vol 22) pg. 1348
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415:(1877) in which she was Prince Nectar the Nimble, and played Prince Amabel in
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258:
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107:. The Census of 1861 has the 13 year-old Jessie Vokes listed as an "Actress".
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writing of her "Miss Jessie looked and played in most bewitching fashion.";
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847:
761:'JESSIE VOKES DEAD. THE FIRST ONE TO DIE OF THE FAMOUS FAMILY OF COMEDIANS'
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220:
694:
A History of the New York stage from the First Performance in 1732 to 1901
21:
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676:. Vol. 28 (11th ed.). Cambridge University Press. p. 178.
99:, where later she played in children’s characters including as Teddy in
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where they were an immediate success, but with the outbreak of the
284:
The piece that most successfully carried an audience by storm was
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20:
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who had married in 1877) in April 1881 when they appeared at the
697:, Dodd, Mead and Company, New York (1903) – Google Books pg. 146
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in which Jessie Vokes played Fatima. This was to be their last
253:. She attracted special notice first as one of the children in
16:
British music hall, pantomime and burlesque actress and dancer
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Tom Thumb; or, King Arthur and the Knights of the Round Table
44:
actress and dancer of the 19th-century and a member of the
383:
The Dragon of Wantley; or, Harlequin or Old Mother Shipton
75:
and who outlived the rest of his "family") popular in the
488:, who was the maternal grandmother of Hollywood starlets
795:
Beauty and the Beast! or, Harlequin and Old Mother Bunch
435:
at Drury Lane as by now the public were wearying of the
379:
Beauty and the Beast! or, Harlequin and Old Mother Bunch
235:
In the early part of her career she played Mamillius in
516:
Jessie Vokes died aged 36 in 1884 at Burleigh House on
449:
Valentine and Orson; or, Harlequin and the Magic Shield
190:
Beauty and the Beast, or Harlequin and Old Mother Bunch
52:
from 1868 to 1879 when their popularity began to wane.
309:
in New York where they remained for three months. The
273:. With her brothers and sisters, Fred and Fawdon and
67:, London in 1848 and was a member of the well-known
158:in London on 26 December 26, 1868 in the pantomime
837:Pantomimes at Drury Lane – It's Behind You website
782:Jessie Vokes (1851–1884) – Footlight Notes website
747:Career of Alice Hamilton – Footlight Notes website
405:(1876) in which Jessie Vokes played Abdallah with
87:Godden (1818–1897) was the daughter of Welsh-born
325:and returned to England in June 1882 but without
709:. Its-behind-you.com, accessed 31 December 2010
528:in London. Her death, the death of her brother
524:in London and is buried in the family plot in
301:. They returned to New York in April 1873 at
32:(14 June 1848 – 7 August 1884) was a British
8:
818:, I. B. Tauris (2015) – Google Books pg. 301
265:, dancing, with her sister, a jig, in which
192:in 1869. They first appeared in the popular
395:Aladdin or Harlequin and the Wonderful Lamp
292:made its debut in the United States at the
848:The Vokes Family – It's Behind You website
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769:, New York, Friday, 8 August 1884, p. 5b
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119:The Vokes Family in about 1875: (l-r)
7:
466:at Drury Lane in 1871 the critic of
177:Harlequin Cock Robin and Jenny Wren
150:and made their London début at the
83:. Their mother Sarah Jane Biddulph
208:in their début performance at the
14:
953:English musical theatre actresses
724:, Routledge (2019) – Google Books
888:"Residents of Brompton Cemetery"
650:
589:Dictionary of National Biography
91:Will Wood and his actress wife.
733:'The Late Miss Rosina Vokes' –
532:and the marriage of her sister
61:Jessie Catherine Biddulph Vokes
963:19th-century English actresses
403:Ali Baba and the Forty Thieves
389:(1871); Mistress Winifred in
1:
973:British vaudeville performers
313:returned to the USA (without
247:, and the Prince of Wales in
988:Burials at Brompton Cemetery
978:19th-century British dancers
180:. Their first appearance in
358:The Illustrated London News
267:Benjamin Nottingham Webster
164:Edward Litt Laman Blanchard
1009:
983:Women of the Victorian era
801:Victoria and Albert Museum
508:Family funerary monument,
351:Jessie Vokes as Fatima in
170:in London, they danced in
101:Dred, or, The Dismal Swamp
458:Of the appearance of the
286:The Belles of the Kitchen
210:Theatre Royal, Drury Lane
194:The Belles of the Kitchen
50:Theatre Royal, Drury Lane
737:, 7 February 1894 pg. 62
943:English stage actresses
915:(subscription required)
875:(subscription required)
861:(subscription required)
673:Encyclopædia Britannica
638:(subscription required)
621:(subscription required)
607:(subscription required)
271:London Standard Theatre
948:English female dancers
691:Thomas Allston Brown,
513:
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269:played Triplet at the
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135:
26:
968:Music hall performers
958:Actresses from London
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350:
223:
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56:Early life and career
24:
391:Children in the Wood
331:Mount Morris Theatre
307:Fifth Avenue Theatre
294:Union Square Theatre
212:in Christmas 1871.
25:Jessie Vokes in 1875
241:; Prince Arthur in
202:Franco-Prussian War
198:Théâtre du Châtelet
812:Jeffrey Richards,
766:The New York Times
707:"The Vokes Family"
514:
486:Rose Wood Morrison
363:
233:
136:
27:
894:on 23 August 2006
827:Richards, pg. 317
526:Brompton Cemetery
510:Brompton Cemetery
490:Constance Bennett
238:The Winter’s Tale
216:Theatrical career
105:The Dumb Savoyard
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425:F. B. Chatterton
399:Dick Whittington
152:Alhambra Theatre
111:The Vokes Family
103:and Florence in
89:strolling player
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361:10 January 1880
288:, in which the
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566:Victoria Vokes
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522:St John's Wood
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303:Niblo's Garden
230:Victoria Vokes
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168:Lyceum Theatre
156:Lyceum Theatre
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109:
97:Surrey Theatre
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15:
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453:F. C. Burnand
450:
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445:Covent Garden
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418:
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413:The White Cat
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375:Humpty Dumpty
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319:Globe Theatre
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174:'s pantomime
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172:W. S. Gilbert
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160:Humpty Dumpty
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131:, Jessie and
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81:Covent Garden
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993:Vokes family
908:
896:. Retrieved
892:the original
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579:
561:Rosina Vokes
551:Fawdon Vokes
546:Vokes family
534:Rosina Vokes
518:Loudoun Road
515:
494:Joan Bennett
483:
478:
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467:
463:
460:Vokes Family
457:
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437:Vokes Family
428:
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378:
374:
373:, including
364:
356:
352:
341:Il trovatore
339:
315:Rosina Vokes
311:Vokes Family
299:Fun in a Fog
298:
290:Vokes Family
285:
283:
262:
248:
242:
236:
234:
205:
193:
189:
175:
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121:Fawdon Vokes
104:
100:
93:
84:
73:Fawdon Vokes
69:Vokes Family
63:was born in
60:
59:
46:Vokes Family
30:Jessie Vokes
29:
28:
18:
938:1884 deaths
933:1848 births
793:Poster for
451:written by
250:Richard III
162:written by
140:music halls
65:Clerkenwell
927:Categories
803:Collection
735:The Sketch
572:References
556:Fred Vokes
530:Fred Vokes
421:Cinderella
417:Cinderella
371:Drury Lane
327:Fred Vokes
261:’s comedy
259:Tom Taylor
186:Drury Lane
144:pantomimes
133:Fred Vokes
34:music hall
469:The Times
464:Tom Thumb
433:pantomime
429:Bluebeard
367:pantomime
353:Bluebeard
244:King John
182:pantomime
148:Edinburgh
77:pantomime
42:burlesque
38:pantomime
540:See also
512:, London
401:(1875);
393:(1872);
385:(1870);
381:(1869);
377:(1868);
275:Victoria
224:Jessie,
129:Victoria
898:8 March
661::
472:wrote:
408:The Era
188:was in
142:and at
797:(1869)
655:
335:Harlem
323:Boston
279:Rosina
226:Rosina
125:Rosina
668:Vokes
592:(DNB)
500:Death
900:2020
492:and
277:and
257:and
228:and
40:and
670:".
520:in
462:in
447:in
369:at
333:in
321:in
184:at
85:née
929::
799:–
774:^
763:–
753:^
682:^
628:^
597:^
586:–
496:.
455:.
355:–
127:,
123:,
36:,
902:.
Text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike License. Additional terms may apply.
