{{Short description|American actress}} '''May Vokes''' (18?? – September 13, 1957)<ref>{{citation|title=Connecticut Death Index, 1949-2012}}</ref> was an American actress and comedienne. She had an active career on the American stage from 1889 until 1937. A Chicago native, she was trained as an actress at the Chicago Conservatory where she performed in multiple student productions in 1888 and 1889. She toured the United States in a production of ''Tom Sawyer'' in 1889, and was active in American regional theaters before making her Broadway debut as the maid Tilly in ''My Friend From India'' in 1896. She returned frequently to Broadway for the remainder of her career. She retired after making her final Broadway appearance in the revival of ''The Bat'' in 1937.
==Life and career== May Vokes was born in Chicago and studied drama at the Chicago Conservatory where her fellow classmates included Olive May and Mabel Eaton.<ref>{{cite news|url=https://www.newspapers.com/article/buffalo-courier-miss-may-vokes/197180586/|title=Miss May Vokes|work=Buffalo Courier|date= April 11, 1897|page= 10}}</ref> She was a student performer at the Chicago Conservatory in productions staged in 1888<ref>{{cite news|url=https://www.newspapers.com/article/chicago-tribune-the-theatres/197179271/|title=The Theatres|work=Chicago Tribune|date=May 18, 1888|page= 5}}</ref><ref>{{cite news|url=https://www.newspapers.com/article/the-inter-ocean-theatrical-gossip/197179517/|title=Theatrical Gossip|work=The Inter Ocean|date= December 23, 1888|page= 13}}</ref> and 1889.<ref>{{cite news|title=Amusements|url=https://www.newspapers.com/article/the-inter-ocean-amusements/197179659/|work=The Inter Ocean|date= January 18, 1889| page= 4}}</ref><ref>{{cite news|url=https://www.newspapers.com/article/chicago-tribune-the-chicago-conservatory/197179807/|title=The Chicago Conservatory|work=Chicago Tribune|date= March 17, 1889|page= 27}}</ref><ref>{{cite news|url=https://www.newspapers.com/article/chicago-tribune-music-and-drama/197180078/|title=Music and Drama|work=Chicago Tribune|date= June 13, 1889|page= 4}}</ref> She began her career as a professional actress around this time.<ref>{{cite news|url=https://www.newspapers.com/article/the-joplin-herald-miss-may-vokes/197180395/|title=Miss May Vokes|work=The Joplin Herald|date=November 22, 1894|page= 3}}</ref> In 1889 she portrayed Jessie Sawyer in a touring production of ''Tom Sawyer'' adapted from the novel by Mark Twain.<ref>{{cite news|title=Tom Sawyer|work=Detroit Free Press|date= September 15, 1889| page=16}}</ref><ref>{{cite news|url=https://www.newspapers.com/article/buffalo-courier-express-tom-sawyer-a/197181405/|title=''Tom Sawyer'' at the Court-Street|work=Buffalo Courier|date= August 27, 1889|page= 5}}</ref> In 1890 she toured as Mary Ann in ''A Base Hit'' in American regional theatres.<ref>{{cite news|url=https://www.newspapers.com/article/the-kalamazoo-gazette-at-the-grand/197181603/|title=At the Grand|work=The Kalamazoo Gazette|date= February 13, 1890|page= 1}}</ref><ref>{{cite news|title=Music and Drama|work=The Saint Paul Globe|date= February 21, 1890|page= 3}}</ref> In the 1890-1891 season she toured in the musical burlesque ''Faust Up to Date''.<ref>{{cite news|title=The World of Players|work=The Brooklyn Daily Times|date=November 15, 1890|page= 6}}</ref><ref>{{cite news|title=Plays and Players|work=The Grand Rapids Press|date= January 2, 1891|page= 4}}</ref>
In 1892 Vokes joined Margaret Mather's acting troupe; appearing as Gertrude in ''The Egyptian''.<ref>{{cite news|title=Amusements|work=Seattle Post-Intelligencer|date= October 1, 1892|page= 5}}</ref> In 1893 she starred in a new play by R. J. Donnelly, ''Cannon Ball Express'', at the Park Theatre in Indianapolis, Indiana.<ref>{{cite news|title=Park Theatre — ''Cannon Ball Express''|work=The Indianapolis News|date= January 18, 1893|page= 3}}</ref> In 1894-1895 she toured the United States with her own troupe, the May Vokes Comedy Company.<ref>{{cite news|title=May Vokes Company|work=Lawrence Daily Journal|date= January 1, 1895|page= 3}}</ref><ref>{{cite news|title=Amusements|work=The Pantagraph|date= April 5, 1894|page= 8}}</ref> Plays performed by the organization included ''A Literary Feller'' (as Flossie)<ref>{{cite news|title=Amusements: May Vokes|work=Illinois State Register|date= May 4, 1894|page= 5}}</ref> ''Blue Blood'', ''Penelope'', and ''A Mountain Waif'' among other comedies.<ref>{{cite news|title=May Vokes Repertoire|work=Pike County News|date= October 25, 1894|page= 1}}</ref>
In 1896 Vokes made her Broadway debut at the Bijou Theatre as the maid Tilly in ''My Friend From India''.<ref>{{cite news|url=https://www.newspapers.com/article/the-new-york-times-a-very-successful-far/197182741/|title=A Very Successful Farce|work=The New York Times|date=October 7, 1896| page= 5}}</ref> She was very successful in this part and proclaimed a great "discovery" by the New York critics.<ref>{{cite news|title=Plays and Players|work=Democrat and Chronicle|date=December 6, 1896|page= 11}}</ref> She continued to play Tilly on tour after the Broadway run closed in 1897.<ref>{{cite news|title=Unique Farce: ''My Friend From India''|work=The Buffalo Enquirer|date= April 16, 1897|page= 9}}</ref> In 1898 she performed the role of an eccentric scrub woman in a new comedy ''The Old Coat'' by W. H. Alldridge first in Buffalo<ref>{{cite news|title=The Old Coat|work=Buffalo Courier|date= March 20, 1898|page= 16}}</ref> and then on Broadway at the Bijou Theatre. It was produced by Edward E. Rice.<ref>{{cite news|url=https://www.newspapers.com/article/new-york-herald-new-plays-first-times/197183245/|title=New Plays First Times|work=New York Herald|date= April 5, 1898| page= 5}}</ref>
Vokes maintained a busy schedule on the New York stage that lasted until 1937 when she gave her final Broadway performance as Lizzie Allen in ''The Bat''; a role that had first brought her acclaim in the 1920 Broadway production.<ref>{{cite news|url=https://www.newspapers.com/article/stamford-advocate-may-vokes-dies-ex-sta/197178199/|title=May Vokes Dies, Ex-Stage Star|work=Stamford Advocate|date= September 14, 1957|page= 6}}</ref> She appeared primarily in comedic roles in stage plays. Some of her many other Broadway appearances included ''When Dreams Come True'', ''Doctor X'', ''A Fool and His Money'', and ''The Quaker Girl''.<ref name=":0">{{cite news|title=May Vokes, Actress; Acted in Theatre Here|work=The New York Times|date=September 14, 1957|page=19|url=https://www.nytimes.com/1957/09/14/archives/may-vokes-acted-in-theatre-here-comedienne-who-appeared-in-original.html}}</ref> She appeared in the films ''Janice Meredith'' in 1924 and ''Get That Venus'' in 1933.<ref>{{cite book|title=Jean Arthur: A Bio-Bibliography|first= Arthur|last= Pierce|first2= Douglas|last2= Swarthout|year=1990|isbn= 9780313266997|publisher=Bloomsbury Academic|page=121}}</ref>
Vokes was married to Ballard Preston Lester,<ref>{{cite book|last=Parker|first=Dorothy|title=Dorothy Parker: Complete Broadway, 1918–1923|date=2014|isbn=9781491722664|page=425|publisher=iUniverse |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=V26PAwAAQBAJ&pg=PA425|access-date=17 July 2018 |language=en}}</ref> whose name was reported as Robert.<ref>{{cite news|title=May Vokes|url=https://www.newspapers.com/image/370373841/?terms=May%2BVokes|access-date=July 17, 2018|work=The Evening Sun|date=September 14, 1957|location=Baltimore, Maryland|page=3}}</ref> She died at Stamford Hospital<ref name=":0" /> on September 13, 1957, in Stamford, Connecticut.<ref>{{cite book|last=Vazzana|first=Eugene Michael|title=Silent Film Necrology|publisher=McFarland & Company|year=2001|isbn=0-7864-1059-0|edition=2nd|location=Jefferson, North Carolina|page=340|oclc=225942678}}</ref>
==References== {{Reflist}}
==External links== * {{IBDB name|id=63355}} * {{IMDb name|id=0901326}}
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{{DEFAULTSORT:Vokes, May}} Category:Year of birth unknown Category:1957 deaths Category:American stage actresses Category:American film actresses Category:Date of birth missing Category:Actresses from Chicago Category:20th-century American actresses Category:Broadway theatre people