actor-manager

American  

[ak-ter-man-uh-jer] / ˈæk tərˈmæn ə dʒər /

noun

1. a leading actor who produces and usually stars in their own productions.

   Sir Henry Irving was one of the first actor-managers.

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Etymology

Origin of actor-manager

First recorded in 1860–65

Example Sentences

A chance meeting with the noted actor-manager Henry Baynton saw him enrolled at Rada in 1949.

From BBC • Jun. 19, 2020

The just-concluded “Renaissance” portion of ASC’s year-round operation seems to be in the spirit of Shakespeare himself and the bygone era of the actor-manager.

From Washington Post • Apr. 25, 2019

Be warned: You may be asked to take part in the rehearsal of a pastiche Elizabethan play, overseen by an actor-manager dressed in the image of William Shakespeare.

From New York Times • Jun. 19, 2017

Increasingly, the production begins to resemble a standoff between Sir Henry Irving, the Victorian-era actor-manager, and the auteur world of Peter Brook.

From Los Angeles Times • Nov. 30, 2016

Always I have here one or two of the great impressarios,—agents, you know, and sometimes I achieve the presence of an actor-manager.

From The Rustle of Silk by Hamilton, Cosmo