Early life Duse was born in
Vigevano,
Lombardy, Austrian Empire, in 1858 to Alessandro Vincenzo Duse (1820–1892) and Angelica Cappelletto (1833–1906). Lombardy would be taken from Austrian control the year after her birth by forces under the
Kingdom of Sardinia, and would form part of the new
Kingdom of Italy when she was about 3. Venice and some surrounding areas would remain part of the Austrian Empire until she was about 8. Both her father and her grandfather, Luigi, were actors from
Chioggia, near
Venice, and she joined the troupe at age four. Due to poverty, she initially worked continually, traveling from city to city with whichever troupe her family was currently engaged. She came to fame in Italian versions of roles made famous by
Sarah Bernhardt, such as
La Dame aux camélias.
Career She gained her first major success in Europe, then toured South America, Russia and the United States in 1893; beginning the tours as a virtual unknown but leaving in her wake a general recognition of her genius. While she made her career and fame performing in the theatrical "
warhorses" of her day, she is remembered for her association with the plays of
Gabriele D'Annunzio Later life '' cover, 30 July 1923 Duse suffered from ill health (largely
pulmonary) throughout most of her adult life, and the many years of touring had taken their toll. She retired from acting in 1909, but returned to the stage in 1921 in a series of engagements in both Europe and America. During this interval, in 1916, she made one film,
Cenere ("Ashes"), prints of which still survive. She was very disappointed in her work in the film, and later wrote to the French singer
Yvette Guilbert with the request not to see "that stupid thing, because you'll find nothing, or almost nothing, of me in that film". There was also a certain amount of professional correspondence between Duse and
D. W. Griffith, though ultimately nothing came of this. On 30 July 1923, Duse became the first woman (and Italian) to be featured on the cover of the nascent magazine
Time.
Death Duse died of
pneumonia at the age of 65 in Pittsburgh in Suite 524 of the Hotel Schenley while on the eastward return leg of a tour of the United States (the Hotel Schenley is now the
William Pitt Union at the University of Pittsburgh). A bronze plaque in the lobby commemorates her death. After being moved to New York City, where she
lay in state for four days before her funeral service, her body was returned to Italy (where another service was performed). She is buried in
Asolo – where she had made her home for the last four years of her life – at the cemetery of Sant' Anna. Her daughter Enrichetta donated some of her mother's items to the state in 1933. These items are preserved in Asolo in the Museo Civico. In 1968 her granddaughter Eleonora Ilaria Bullough (aka Mary of St Mark as a Dominican nun) donated the last items to the
Giorgio Cini Foundation in Venice. == Acting philosophy ==