Evelyn Laye

Evelyn Laye (née Elsie Evelyn Lay; 10 July 1900 – 17 February 1996) was an English actress and singer.

Born into a theatrical family, she made her professional début in 1915 aged fifteen and quickly established herself in musical comedy. By 1920 she was starring in leading roles in the West End at Daly's and other theatres, becoming London's highest-paid star. Her first marriage, in 1926, to the performer Sonnie Hale was brief and ended in divorce after he abandoned her for the singer Jessie Matthews.

Laye made her American debut in 1929 starring in Noël Coward's musical Bitter Sweet. In the 1930s she divided her time between the West End and Broadway, and starred in American and British films.

She entertained naval personnel during the Second World War. Afterwards, when fashion turned against the romantic musicals in which she had made her reputation, Laye was frequently seen on the non-musical stage, appearing both in the classics, such as The School for Scandal and in new plays, often together with her second husband, the actor Frank Lawton. She was in several long-running comedies, including The Amorous Prawn in the 1950s and No Sex Please, We're British in the 1970s. In addition she appeared in post-war musicals, both American and British.

Laye was still working into her early nineties, and appeared at Carnegie Hall in New York in 1991 in a concert of Coward's music. She died in London in 1996, aged 95.

Birth and Death Data: Born July 10, 1900 (Bloomsbury), Died February 17, 1996 (London)

Date Range of DAHR Recordings: 1920

Roles Represented in DAHR: soprano vocal

= Recordings are available for online listening.
= Recordings were issued from this master. No recordings issued from other masters.

Recordings

Company Matrix No. Size First Recording Date Title Primary Performer Description Role Audio
Columbia 74046 12-in. approximately 4/14/1920 Not a scrap Gaiety Theatre Orchestra ; Evelyn Laye ; Roy Royston ; Arthur Wood Female-male vocal duet, with orchestra vocalist, soprano vocal  
Columbia 74047 12-in. approximately 4/14/1920 You know how much I love you Gaiety Theatre Orchestra ; Evelyn Laye ; Roy Royston ; Arthur Wood Female-male vocal duet, with orchestra vocalist, soprano vocal  
Columbia 74049 12-in. approximately 4/14/1920 The guards brigade Gaiety Theatre Orchestra ; Evelyn Laye ; Arthur Wood Female vocal solo, with orchestra and chorus vocalist, soprano vocal  
Columbia 74050 12-in. approximately 4/15/1920 The shop girl Gaiety Theatre Orchestra ; Evelyn Laye ; Arthur Wood Female vocal solo, with orchestra and chorus vocalist, soprano vocal  

Citation

Discography of American Historical Recordings, s.v. "Laye, Evelyn," accessed November 5, 2024, https://adpprod2.library.ucsb.edu/names/353768.

Laye, Evelyn. (2024). In Discography of American Historical Recordings. Retrieved November 5, 2024, from https://adpprod2.library.ucsb.edu/names/353768.

"Laye, Evelyn." Discography of American Historical Recordings. UC Santa Barbara Library, 2024. Web. 5 November 2024.

DAHR Persistent Identifier

URI: https://adpprod2.library.ucsb.edu/names/353768

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