Otto Lehfeldt

* 03.02.1825 in Wrocław; ✝ 23.11.1885 in Weimar

Actor

Biography

While still young Lehfeld joined a troupe of travelling players and spent the first years of his theatrical career making brief guest appearances. It was not until 1855 that he was invited by Franz von Dingelstedt to work at the Munich Court Theatre, where, however, he remained only one year. Only in 1861 would he again allow Dingelstedt to persuade him to accept a permanent engagement, this time at the Weimar Court Theatre – from which, though, he was released with a pension in 1871 on account of his being hard of hearing. None the less, his acting life continued with a series of guest appearances.

Lehfeld’s celebrity was without doubt based on his interpretation of characters from Shakespeare. His performances of Richard III, Shylock and King Lear receive frequent approving mentions.

Shakespeare Roles

• Coriolanus (Coriolanus)
• Julius Caesar (Julius Caesar)
• Claudius (Hamlet)
• Henry IV (Henry V)
• Archbishop of Canterbury (Henry V)
• Winchester (Henry VI)
• Shylock/Antonio (The Merchant of Venice)
• King John (King John)
• Lear (King Lear)
• Macbeth (Macbeth)
• Othello (Othello)
• Bolingbroke/Richard II. (Richard II)
• Richard III (Richard III)
• Caliban/Antonio (The Tempest)

Literature

Secondary Literature

• Bamberg, Eduard von: Otto Lehfeld. Ein Erinnerungsblatt für seine Freunde. Halle, 1886.
• Martersteig, Max: Das deutsche Theater im neunzehnten Jahrhundert. Leipzig, 1904. P. 456.

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