Priscilla Horton

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Priscilla Horton, later Priscilla German Reed (1818 - 1895), was a popular singer and actress, known for her role as Ariel in W. C. Macready's production of The Tempest in 1838 and "fairy" burlesques at Covent Garden Theatre. Later, she was known, along with her husband, Thomas German Reed, for creating the family-friendly German Reed Entertainments.

[edit] Life and career

Horton had been performing on the stage in London since the age of ten. She married Thomas German Reed in 1844. Blond and blue eyed, Horton had sometimes played in "trouser roles", which, by the time Horton entered the profession, had lost much of their risqué aura. She was a favourite of James Planché and later a mentor to W. S. Gilbert, and her performances inspired Gilbert to create some of his famous contralto roles. She retired from performing in 1880.

On April 2, 1855, the German Reeds presented the first performance of "Miss P. Horton's Illustrative Gatherings," musical theatre performances usually consisting of one or two brief comic operas designed for a minimal number of characters and performed with either the piano and harmonium or a small ensemble of musicians. These eventually became "Mr. And Mrs. German Reed's Entertainments", presented at the Royal Gallery of Illustration on Regent Street (and later St. George's Hall). The establishment was called the "Gallery of Illustration," rather than a theatre, and the pieces they put on were called "entertainments," rather than plays, extravaganzas, or burlesques. Reed himself composed the music for many of these pieces, and often appeared in them, together with Mrs. German Reed. Their son took over the entertainments upon their retirment.