May Yohé
May Yohé | |
|---|---|
Yohé in The Era Almanack, 1894 | |
| Born | Mary Augusta Yohé April 6, 1866 Bethlehem, Pennsylvania, US |
| Died | August 29, 1938 (aged 72) Boston, Massachusetts, US |
| Occupation | Musical actress |
| Spouse(s) | Lord Francis Hope Putnam Bradlee Strong John A. Smuts |
Mary Augusta "May" Yohé (April 6, 1866 – August 29, 1938) was an American musical theatre actress. She began her career in 1886 with the McCaull Comic Opera Company in New York and Chicago. After other performances in the United States, she quickly gained success on the London stage, beginning in 1893. There she created the title role in the hit show Little Christopher Columbus in 1894.
The same year, she married Lord Francis Hope, the owner of the Hope Diamond. After the wedding, she continued to perform in musical theatre in London's West End and then the U.S. After squandering their wealth, the two divorced in 1902, and she later married a series of other financially unsuccessful, but often adventurous, men. In the early 20th century, she performed in music hall and vaudeville on the West Coast and elsewhere in the U.S., but she was frequently in financial jeopardy. By 1924, she and her last husband, John Smuts, had settled in Boston, where she died in near poverty.