Guy Little Theatrical Photograph
1880
photographic
From the collection of Victoria and Albert Museum
1880
photographic
From the collection of Victoria and Albert Museum
This photo shows Edwin Booth on stage as Hamlet in 1880. Henry Van Der Weyde caught the moment during a run at London’s Princess’s Theatre. It’s an albumen print on card, part of a big wave of actor portraits. Back then, fans snapped up actor photos like trading cards. These “cartes de visite” were small and cheap. By the late 1870s they gave way to bigger “cabinet cards.” Look up Van Der Weyde, Henry Frederick.
