Early career Urquhart's first theatrical job was as a
chorus girl at the
Standard Theatre in New York City for $10 a week ($ in today's money). She soon had a small role in a
serio-comedic opera by Charles Brown called
Elves and Mermaids. She was in the chorus of another D'Oyly Carte production, the
comic opera Claude Duval, the following theatrical season.
Augustin Daly's company engaged Urquhart to play
utility parts from 1882 to 1883. In this capacity, she performed as Edinge in
Giroutte, Mary Ann in
The Passing Regiment, and in a production of
Needles and Pins. In September 1884, as a member of the
Bijoux Theatre opera company, she played Venus in a
burlesque,
Orpheus and Eurydice, at Stetson's
Fifth Avenue Theatre on Broadway. She performed the role of Mars in another burlesque,
Ixion in February 1885 at The New York Comedy Theatre. During the 1885 to 1886 theater season in New York City, Urquhart was also in two comedies by
George Bernard Shaw:
Arms and the Man and
How He Lied to Her Husband. In 1886, Urquhart acted in dramas with
Lawrence Barrett at the
Globe Theatre in Boston, Massachusetts, appearing as
Portia in
Julius Caesar, Nicol in ''The King's Pleasure,
and Donna Isabella in The Wonder''. Urquhart joined the
Casino Theatre on Broadway, soon rising from the chorus to small parts in comic operas. As a leading lady in
Erminie, she started a fashion trend by forgoing her
petticoats "to accentuate her gorgeous figure". Also at the Casino Theatre, Urquhart performed the role of Pompanoa in
The Marquis in September 1887, and Princess Etelka in
Nadja in May 1888. She also played Dame Carruthers in Gilbert and Sullivan's
The Yeomen of the Guard in October 1888 and was the Princess of Granada in the
operetta The Brigands,
W. S. Gilbert's translation of
Offenbach's Les brigands, in May 1899. In an 1889 revival of
Nadja, Urquhart understudied Lillian Russell, filling in for the star as Princess Nadja on April 25 and 26. In February 1890, she performed as Iza in
The Grand Duchess of Gerolstein, with Russell in the title role. While with the Casino company, Urquhart also played Papanea in
Madelen. In 1893, Urquhart married English actor
Guy Standing and announced her retirement from the stage in February. In October 1893, the couple sued Fuller for $1,000 for non-fulfillment of their contracts. The same year, she performed in a show written for her,
In Durance Vile, at
B. F. Keith's vaudeville theater in Boston. Although she had aged since her time with Casino Theatre company, one critic commented, "She has gained greatly in the quality of her acting, and her performance of the part in the little sketch in which she is making her continuous performance debut is entirely satisfactory to patrons of that form of amusement." The Providence theater manager wrote in his report, "She never was very strong here, and this engagement is no exception. It is a nice clean act, and it is all right to play it about as often as we do. This is the first time we have had her in more than three years. She falls considerably short of being a headline feature." She then returned to
Broadway, performing as Mrs. Challoner in
Martha Morton's comedy
The Diplomat at the
Madison Square Theatre in April 1902. In 1906, she played the role of Mrs. Clandon in a production of
George Bernard Shaw's
You Never Can Tell in
Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. One critic wrote, "Urquhart played the advanced mother with grace and power." The latter was her final role. trade card) == Trade cards ==