Kitty Loftus

Kitty Loftus (16 June 1867 – 17 March 1927) was a British dancer, singer and actor-manager. A leading soubrette of the 1890s and 1900s, at the height of her career she performed with her Kitty Loftus Company.

Catherine 'Kitty' Newman was born in Whitecliffe in Gloucestershire in 1867, one of the singing and dancing daughters born to the touring actor George Frederick Newman and his actress wife Mary. She was the sister of the actresses Rosie Loftus Leyton (Rose Newman, 1877-1902), Olive Loftus Leyton (Ada Newman, (1870-1936) and Mabel Luxmore (Lillian Newman, born 1866). The tiny, blonde Kitty Loftus began a stage career as a child in plays and in pantomime before touring with the Milton-Rays. She made her stage début as Puck in A Midsummer Night's Dream in 1879, quickly becoming a popular favourite in the provinces playing leading new burlesque rôles in touring productions including Psyche in Venus (1890), Jack in Little Jack Sheppard, Siebel in Faust up to Date, and Cinderellen in Cinder Ellen up too Late. During Christmas 1890 she played the title role in the pantomime Aladdin at the Theatre Royal, Brighton. She became a regular in the annual pantomime at The Crystal Palace, in December 1891 appearing in the title role in Aladdin and playing Jack Daw in The Babes in the Wood and Bold Robin Hood (1892). Of her performance in the latter the critic of The Sketch wrote of her:

'This very talented and very charming actress is again playing in the pantomime at the Crystal Palace, and once more she makes a distinctive mark and secures a bewitching triumph. Miss Kitty Loftus is, indeed, the fairy incarnation of the truest spirit of burlesque. She is a tricky sprite and a fantastic elf. She is an embodied lightness, instinct with the glad sparkle and effervescent gaiety of her peculiar branch of theatrical activity. She is daintily little, and yet exquisitely modelled, and her light foot dances as if dancing were the mere effusion of airy joy, expressed through merriment, but restrained by grace... Her voice is of no great compass or power; but she sings with so much expression as to bring out the full meaning of the words, say, of such a song as Mr. Rudyard Kipling's "Tommy Atkins", which she sang last year. Ambition may lurk beneath those careless curls, and the young lady, perhaps, secretly longs to emulate Mrs. Bancroft, and to turn from the dainty deliciousness of sparkling burlesque to gracious and coquettish comedy... Miss Kitty Loftus is still so young that much may be hoped from the future career to which she devotes such zealous labour. Meanwhile, all may now make acquaintance, at the Crystal Palace, with her agile grace, her sportive lightness, and her quaint archness.'

In 1893 Loftus created the title rôle pf Phyllis in the touring production of the most successful of the early variety musical comedies, The Lady Slavey, while in 1894 she was Eric in the pantomime Santa Claus at the Lyceum Theatre. Loftus went on to appear as Emma opposite Arthur Roberts in Gentleman Joe at the Prince of Wales Theatre (1895), Janet in Biarritz (1896) and Mrs. Bailey in The White Silk Dress (1896). In early 1896 she was playing the title role in Trilby at the Prince of Wales' Theatre. She starred as Dora Selwyn in the allegedly Armenian musical The Yashmak (1897) and appeared in The Swineherd and the Emperor's New Clothes at Terry's Theatre (1898); was Princess Petula opposite Louie Pounds as Prince Charming in Her Royal Highness by Basil Hood and Walter Slaughter at the Vaudeville Theatre (1898); played the Maid-Servant in A Good Time at the Opera Comique (1899) and succeeded Kate Cutler to the title rôle of The French Maid at the Vaudeville Theatre (1898). She made her first appearance in America as Denise in the musical In Gay Paree at the New York Theatre (1899) Harriet in Shock-Headed Peter at the Garrick Theatre (1900) was Lucy in The Rivals at the Haymarket Theatre (1900), and played the title role on tour in English Nell in 1901. She went to court to make a legal challenge against her old partner Arthur Roberts when he dropped her as co-star for his West End season of HMS Irresponsible (1900) after the pre-London tour in favour of Kate Cutler and on losing the case played in Shakespeare with Benson and appeared as Maude Sportington in a revival of Morocco Bound (1901) and in the title rôle of the musical comedy Bébé (1901). She produced and starred in the musical comedy Naughty Nancy at the Savoy Theatre (1902) and was Margery Goring in her own production of the three-act comedy A Maid from School at Terry's Theatre (1904) and played the Duchess in her own production of the burlesque The Duchess of Silliecrankie (1904), again at Terry's Theatre. Loftus was in the pantomime at the London Pavilion from December 1905. In 1906 she made a tour of South Africa with George Robey.

The latter part of her career was spent in variety, with Loftus appearing in music halls such as the Holborn Empire in 1908, at the London Coliseum and touring the provinces of the United Kingdom.

She married the theatrical manager William Phillips Warren-Smith (1872-1927) in 1907. From at least 1911 to 1925 the couple were living in Marylebone in London.

Kitty Loftus Warren-Smith died at her home in St John's Wood in London in 1927 having caught influenza some six weeks before. In her will she left £847 6s 10d to her husband.