JOHN PHILIP KEMBLE (1757-1823), the second child, was born at Prescot, Lancashire, on Feb. 1, 1757. He was educated for the Roman Catholic priesthood at Sedgeley Park Catholic seminary, near Wolverhampton, and the English college at Douai, France. But he had no vocation, and on his return to England he joined the theatrical company of Crump and Chamberlain, his first appearance being as Theodosius in Lee's tragedy at Wolver hampton on Jan. 8, 1776. In 1778 he joined the York company of Tate Wilkinson, appearing at Wakefield as Captain Plume in Farquhar's The Recruiting Officer; in Hull for the first time as Macbeth on Oct. 3o, and in York as Orestes in Ambrose Philips's Distressed Mother.
He appeared as Hamlet in Dublin on Nov. 2, 1781, and was engaged at Drury Lane in 1783, where he made his debut on Sept.
3o, 1783, in the same part. The Drury Lane public were mod erately enthusiastic, but his performance with his sister, Mrs. Siddons, in Macbeth (March 31, 1785) established him as a popular favourite. Brother and sister had first appeared together at Drury Lane on Nov. 22, 1783, as Beverley and Mrs. Beverley in Moore's The Gamester, and as King John and Constance in Shakespeare's tragedy. In the following year they played Mont gomerie and Matilda in Cumberland's The Carmelite, and in 1785 Adorni and Camiola in Kemble's adaptation of Massinger's A Maid of Honour, and Othello and Desdemona. Between 1785 and 1787 Kemble appeared in a variety of roles, his Mentevole in Jephson's Julia producing an overwhelming impression. He mar ried (Dec. 8, 1787) Priscilla Hopkins Brereton (1756-1845), the widow of an actor and herself an actress.
Kemble's appointment as manager of Drury Lane in 1788 gave him full opportunity to dress the characters less according to tradition than in harmony with his own conception of what was suitable. In his own version of Coriolanus, which was revived during his first season, the character of the "noble Roman" exactly suited his powers ; it is even said that he allowed its influence to colour his private manner and modes of speech. His tall and im
posing person, noble countenance, and solemn and grave demean our were uniquely adapted for the Roman characters in Shake speare's plays ; and when he had to depict the gradual growth and development of one absorbing passion, his representation gathered a momentum and majestic force that were irresistible. His defect was in flexibility, variety, rapidity; the characteristic of his style was method, regularity, precision, elaboration even of the min utest details, founded on a thorough psychological study of the special personality he had to represent. Kemble excelled in decla mation, but physically he was incapable of giving expression to impetuous vehemence and searching pathos.
On account of the eccentricities of Sheridan, the proprietor of Drury Lane, Kemble withdrew from the management, and, although he resumed his duties at the beginning of the season 1800-oi, he at the close of 1802 finally resigned connection with it. In 1803 he became manager of Covent Garden, in which he had acquired a sixth share for £23,000. The theatre was burned down on Sept. 20, 1808, and the raising of the prices after the opening of the new theatre, in 1809, led to riots, which practically suspended the performances for three months. Kemble was only saved from ruin by a loan, afterwards converted into a gift, of L10,000 from the duke of Northumberland. Kemble's last performance was as Coriolanus on June 23, 1817. His retire ment was probably hastened by the rising popularity of Edmund Kean. He died at Lausanne on Feb. 26, 1823.
See Boaden, Life of John Philip Kemble (1825) ; Fitzgerald, The Kembles (1871) .