Who was Helena Modjeska?
GOOGLE is celebrating the life of Helena Modjeska with a special Doodle.
The search engine remembered the Polish actress on Tuesday, October 12, 2021.
Who was Helena Modjeska?
Helena Modjeska, also known as Helen Modrzejewska, was born as Jadwiga Benda.
She was a -born actress and fervent Polish patriot who gained fame as a major interpreter of Shakespearean plays for 19th century American audiences.
She was born in 1840 and died April 8, 1909, in Newport Beach, .
The actress was sent to study at a boarding school for girls and then later to a school run by the Presentation Sister.
She began her acting career on provincial stages with strong support of her life partner, Gustaw Zimajer.
It was thanks to him that she first appeared on stage in Bochnia in 1861.
She made her theatrical debut in 1861 in one-act comedy The White Camellia, with reviewers praising her "unquestionable talent".
While she became successful in Poland’s major cities, she felt the full range of her talent was limited by the scale of how small the country’s venues were.
In July 1876, she claimed she had poor health to quit the Warsaw Imperial Theater to take a year’s leave of absence in the US.
By August, she had learnt two new roles in English.
In 1877, she debuted in America under the name Helena Modjeska, embarking on a road to US stardom, which lasted three decades.
Her 46-year career saw her act in nearly 300 roles and more than 6,000 plays, both in Polish and English.
She also performed in more than 300 cities globally and played Lady Macbeth 520 times.
Why has she been honored with a Google Doodle?
celebrated Helena Modjeska on Tuesday, October 12, 2021 - marking her 181st birthday.
The late Polish actress was widely regarded as one of America’s greatest Shakespearean stage performers of the late nineteenth century.
She died in 1909 at the age of 68.