Emma Romer

Drawing, possibly of Emma Romer, by Alfred Edward Chalon, pencil and watercolour, circa 1836

Emma Romer, afterwards Emma Almond (1814–1868) was a leading British soprano of the 19th century, and for three years a theatre manager and producer.

Biography

Emma Romer, born in 1814, was the daughter of John Romer and his wife, Sarah Cooper. The Romers were a theatrical family - "uncles! aunts! cousins! brothers! sisters! - all have "smelt the lamp"', as a contemporary publication puts it. She was a pupil of James Elliot, and later of Sir George Smart (according to the Dictionary of National Biography. Another source indicates she was first taught by a Mr. Watson, and then for a short period by Smart, and afterwards - Smart's fees being more than the family could afford - by Elliot). Her first theatrical appearance was announced at Covent Garden Theatre for 16 October 1830, when, as Clara in The Duenna, she exhibited a soprano voice of great volume and compass, together with considerable dramatic talent. But the faultiness of her voice-production, and failure in the technique of her art, checked her immediate progress. The suggestion is that her talent - at least in her early years - was limited by the quality of her teachers.

In 1834, however, after appearing at Covent Garden as Zerlina in Fra Diavolo and Rosina in The Barber of Seville (for her benefit), Miss Romer was engaged at the English Opera House, where she created the rôles of Eolia in John Barnett's The Mountain Sylph and Zulima in Edward Loder's Nourjahad, under the management of Samuel James Arnold. In the winter she returned to Covent Garden, where, in 1835, as Amina in La sonnambula, she "reached the topmost round of the ladder of fame", according to the Theatrical Observer. But she immediately afterwards declined a minor part, and threw up her Covent Garden engagement. Subsequently, as Agnes in Der Freischütz and Liska in Der Vampyr (Lyceum, 1835), she won much admiration.

In September 1835 she married George Almond, an army contractor. After her marriage Mrs. Almond appeared at Covent Garden as Esmeralda in Quasimodo, a pasticcio from the great masters. The death of Maria Malibran in 1836 afforded her further opportunities, and she now filled the chief rôles in English and Italian opera at Drury Lane, appearing in Fair Rosamond (1837), The Maid of Artois, La favorite, Robert le diable, The Bohemian Girl, Maritana, and many other pieces.

In 1852 she undertook the management of the Surrey Theatre, where, during three seasons, she brought out a series of operas in English. After the death of her husband, Mrs. Almond retired from her profession, settling at Margate. She died there, aged 54, on 11 April 1868, and was buried in Brompton Cemetery.

Critical appraisal

Romer is described as "one of the leading sopranos of her day in English opera", with a big voice of great compass, and was a general favourite of audiences.

Family

Her brother, Frank Romer, musical composer and member of a publishing firm, died in 1889. Her sister Helen (d. 1890) was wife of Mark Lemon, founding editor of both Punch and The Field. Ann Romer (d. 1852), the vocalist, who married William Brough, was Emma Romer's first cousin.

References

Works cited

• Baron-Wilson, Margaret Harries (1844). Our Actresses: Or, Glances at Stage Favourites, Past and Present, Volume 2. 65, Cornhill, London, England: Smith Elder & Co. pp. 299–301. {{cite book}}: Invalid |ref=harv (help)CS1 maint: location (link)
• Bratton, Jacky (2011). The Making of the West End Stage: Marriage, Management and the Mapping of Gender in London 1830-1870. Cambridge, England: Cambridge University Press. p. 106. {{cite book}}: Invalid |ref=harv (help)
• Cockrell, Dale (1989). Excelsior: Journals of the Hutchinson Family Singers, 1842-1846. Pendragon Press. p. 357. {{cite book}}: Invalid |ref=harv (help)
• Middleton, Lydia Miller (1897). "Romer, Emma" . In Lee, Sidney (ed.). Dictionary of National Biography. Vol. 49. London: Smith, Elder & Co. {{cite encyclopedia}}: Invalid |ref=harv (help)

Attribution

 This article incorporates text from a publication now in the public domain: Middleton, Lydia Miller (1897). "Romer, Emma". In Lee, Sidney (ed.). Dictionary of National Biography. Vol. 49. London: Smith, Elder & Co.