Гарриет Смитсон: Муза Берлиоза и трагедия актрисы.

Anglo Irish actress

Harriet Constance Smithson (18 March 1800 – 3 March 1854), who also went by Henrietta Constance Smithson, Harriet Smithson Berlioz, and Miss H. C. Smithson, was an Anglo Irish Shakespearean actress of the 19th century, best known as the first wife and muse of Hector Berlioz.

Harriet Smithson was born on 18 March 1800, at Ennis, County Clare, Ireland. Her father, William Joseph Smithson, was an actor and theatrical manager from Gloucestershire, England, and her mother was an actress whose full name is unknown. After Barrett's death on 16 February 1808, the Smithsons sent Harriet to a boarding school in Waterford.

Berlioz discovered Smithson at the Odéon Theatre performing the roles of Juliet Capulet and Ophelia and immediately fell in love with her. He persistently sent her letters despite never having met her. For a brief period, he lived in an apartment whence he could see her return home and watch her until she went to sleep. She ignored all of his advances until 1832, when she was invited to a performance of Lélio, a sequel to his Symphonie Fantastique, by a mutual friend. She realized that the symphony was about her and sent Berlioz a message congratulating him. Berlioz quickly received permission to meet her and they became lovers. Despite her quiet reluctance and the opposition of both families and friends, they were married at the British Embassy in Paris on 3 October 1833. Louis, the couple's only child, was born on 14 August 1834. Smithson soon became resentful and jealous of Berlioz as his musical success distanced him from her. As she became increasingly possessive and ill, Berlioz began an affair with Marie Recio, a singer at the Paris Opera, who was to be Berlioz’ second wife. Smithson eventually moved out of the matrimonial home on the rue Saint Vincent, Montmartre, to the rue Blanche in 1843, but was still financially supported by Berlioz.

Toward the end of her life, Smithson suffered from paralysis, which left her barely able to move or speak. She died on 3 March 1854, at her home on the rue Saint Vincent, and was buried at the Cimetière Saint Vincent. Berlioz later had her body reinterred at the Montmartre cemetery when Saint Vincent's was to be redeveloped.

Year Title Role Playwright1814The WillAlbina Mandevill Frederick Reynolds1816The School for ScandalLady Teazle Richard Brinsley Sheridan1816 Laugh When You CanMrs. Mortimer Frederick Reynolds1816 Lover's Vows Amelia Elizabeth Inchbald1816 The Mountaineers Floranthe George Coleman1816 The StrangerMrs. HallerAugust von Kotzebue 1827 Ben Nazir, the SaracenBathilda Thomas Colley Grattan