ALLEN, VIOLA (1869— ), American actress, was born in Huntsville, Ala., on Oct. 27, 1869. She was a daughter of C. Leslie Allen, an actor of ability, and was educated in Boston, Toronto, and New York city. At the age of 13 she made her debut in the title-role of Esmeralda at Madison Square theatre, New York. Later she appeared in leading classical, Shakespearian and comedy roles with Lawrence Barrett, Tommaso Salvini, Joseph Jefferson, and other noted actors. She created and played leading parts in Sowing the Wind, The Masqueraders, and Under the Red Robe. In 1898 she appeared with marked success as Gloria Quayle in The Christian, by Hall Caine, and in 1902 as Roma in Hall Caine's The Eternal City. Beginning in 1903 in a series of Shakespearian productions, she played Viola in Twelfth Night, in 1904-05 she appeared as Hermione and Perdita in A Winter's Tale, and in 1906-07 she played in a repertoire which included, besides the foregoing, Cymbeline and As You Like It. During the ensuing ten years she was seen mainly in modern comedy parts, but in 1915 she returned to Shakespearian drama, playing Lady Macbeth in company with J. K. Hackett, and in 1916 she appeared as Mistress Ford in The Merry Wives of Windsor. In 1906 she was married to Peter Duryea.