BERNHARDT, Rosine, barn-hart, r&-zen, better known as SARAH, French actress: b. Paris, 23 Oct. 1845. Of Jewish descent, her father French, her mother Dutch, her early life was spent largely in Amsterdam. In 1858 she entered the Paris Conservatoire and gained prizes for tragedy and comedy in 1861 and 1862, but her debut at the Theatre Francais in (1phi genie' and Scribe's (Valerie' was not a suc cess. After a brief retirement she reappeared at the Gymnase and the Porte Saint-Martin in burlesque, and in 1867, at the Odeon in higher drama. Her success in Hugo's (Ruy Bias) in 1872 led to her being recalled to the Theatre Francais, since which she has abundantly proved her dramatic genius. In 18'79 she vis ited London and again in 1880, about which time she severed connection with the Comedie Francaise under heavy penalty. In 1880, 1:•:.7, 1891, 1896 and 1900 she made successful ap pearances in the United States, and between and after these dates visited Switzerland, Hol land, South America, Italy, Algeria, Australia, etc. In 1899 she appeared in a new rendering of (Hamlet' in Pans and scored a most flat tring triumph. Among her most successful impersonations are (Theodora,' (Fedora,' (La Tosca' and (Cleopitre) in the plays 6earing those titles. In 1882 she married M. Damala, a Greek, whom she divorced not long after ward. She visited America again in 1911, appearing in a repertoire of her best-known roles, and in the spring of 1913 returned and played a short engagement, her repertoire con sisting of single acts selected from (Phedre,' (Lucrece Borgia,' (La Dame aux Camelias,) (La Tosce and a new one-act play, (line Nuit de Noel, sous la terreur,) written by her son Maurice Bernhardt in collaboration with Henri Cain. Owing to a slight accident, she was
unable to walk without assistance during this engagement, but her matchless voice was un impaired and she received an ovation at every performance. Her position as the first actress of her day is undisputed. She is mistress of every item of stagecraft. With the exception of Coquelin, no actor or actress of her time has approached her in the perfection of her art. In addition to her extraordinary gifts as an actress, she has shown considerable talent in sculpture, painting and writing. She has exhibited both painting and sculpture at the Salon, where her piece (Apres la term:rite (1876) received honorable mention. In 1907 she published a volume of (Memoires.' She has written two plays, (L'aveu,) a one-act comedy, produced at the Odeon in 1888, and (Adrienne Lecouvreur" (1907), based on the play of the same name by Scribe and Legouve. She was made a member of the Legion of Honor in 1913, and in the same year, in Paris, won one of her greatest triumphs in (Jeanne Dore.> Consult Jules Huret, (Sarah Bern hardt,' with a preface by Edmond Rostand (Eng. trans., Philade/phia 1909), and her own (Memoires' (Paris 1907).