Rose McClendon
Rose McClendon was a leading African-American Broadway actress and co-founder of the Negro People's Theatre. She was a key figure in the Harlem Renaissance.
Introduction
Rose McClendon (nee Rosalie Virginia Scott) was born in Greenville, South Carolina in 1884. As a child, she relocated to New York City with her parents, Sandy and Lena Scott, who worked for a wealthy family as coachman and housekeeper. In 1904, aged twenty, she married Dr. Henry Pruden McClendon, a licensed chiropractor who supplemented his income working as a Pullman porter. They made their home in Harlem and Rose McClendon became actively involved with St. Mark’s African Methodist Episcopal Church, often directing and acting in amateur church theatricals. McClendon had no children and died suddenly of pneumonia in 1936 at the age of 51.
Key Dates & Events
- 1904 - McClendon marries Dr Henry Pruden McClendon.
- 1916 - McClendon wins a scholarship to attend the American Academy of Dramatic Arts at Carnegie Hall.
- 1926 - McClendon makes a name for herself with her performance in the experimental opera Deep River.
- 1927 - McClendon wins the Morning Telegraph Acting Award for her performance as Serena in Dubose and Dorothy Heyward's Porgy.
- 1935 - The role of Cora in Langston Hughes’ Mulatto is created specifically for McClendon.
- 1935 - McClendon takes on a supervisory role with the Federal Theatre Project (Negro Unit).
- 1935 - McClendon co-founds the Negro People’s Theatre with actor and director, Dick Campbell.
- 1950 - The estate of McClendon’s husband donates two volumes of scrapbooks to the New York Public Library.
Context & Analysis
Education & Influences
Rose McClendon was educated in the New York public school system and became interested in acting while at school. She went on to appear in amateur church theatricals with St. Mark’s African Methodist Episcopal Church. In 1916, she won a scholarship to attend the American Academy of Dramatic Arts at Carnegie Hall. She spent two years at the
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