Lady Romeo, Tana Wojczuk’s biography of the great nineteenth-century thespian Charlotte Cushman, is a literary treat. The subtitle dubs the actress “America’s first celebrity,” but in fact after Cushman’s death she fell into obscurity because of her sexual and gender nonconformity. Cushman forged her reputation with an early version of method acting and cemented her fame and fortune playing men’s roles—most notably, Romeo. One critic called her passionate interpretation of the iconic lover “a genuine heart-storm.” Offstage, Cushman pursued romantic relationships with women, including sculptor Emma Stebbins, who modeled the statue that tops the Bethesda Fountain in Central Park after Cushman. When Cushman retired to Rome, she created a community of “Jolly Bachelors” with other women-loving women. Wojczuk’s vivid prose reanimates a woman who lived as a lesbian before that identity was an option and whose contributions to American theater lay buried for more than a century.
Lady Romeo: The Radical and Revolutionary Life of Charlotte Cushman, America’s First Celebrity, by Tana Wojczuk. Published by Avid Reader Press/Simon & Schuster. The editor is Julianna Haubner; the agent is Kiele Raymond. Lady Romeo is a finalist for the Publishing Triangle’s Judy Grahn Award for Lesbian Nonfiction; the winner will be announced on May 12.