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Who Played Private Willis in Iolanthe

Private Willis is a role in Iolanthe, a opera that opened Broadway in 1915.

Strephon, an Arcadian shepherd, wants to marry Phyllis, a ward of the Court of Chancery. Phyllis does not know that Strephon is half fairy - down to the waist. When Phyllis sees Strephon kissing an apparently young woman, she assumes the worst. But her "rival" turns out to be none other than Strephon's own mother, Iolanthe, a fairy - fairies never grow old. But Phyllis' guardian, the Lord Chancellor of England, and half the peers in the House of Lords are sighing after her. Soon the peers and the fairies are virtually at war, and long friendships are nearly torn asunder.

11 actors have played Private Willis in Iolanthe.

View full cast of Iolanthe

Performer Production Opened
Charles Manners West End Iolanthe 1882
John Hendricks Broadway Iolanthe 1913
Herbert Waterous Broadway Iolanthe 1915
William C. Gordon Broadway Iolanthe 1926
William C. Gordon Broadway Iolanthe 1927
Herbert Waterous Broadway Iolanthe 1931
Herbert Waterous Broadway Iolanthe 1934
Sydney Granville Broadway Iolanthe 1934
Herbert Waterous Broadway Iolanthe 1936
Sydney Granville Broadway Iolanthe 1936
Sydney Granville Broadway Iolanthe 1939
Frederick Persson Broadway Iolanthe 1942
Robert Eckles Broadway Iolanthe 1944
Richard Walker Broadway Iolanthe 1948
Richard G. Watson Broadway Iolanthe 1951
Robert Eckles Broadway Iolanthe 1952
Fisher Morgan Broadway Iolanthe 1955
Bruce Lawrence Off-Broadway Iolanthe 1965

Other Roles in Iolanthe

Role Production Opened
Celia Broadway Iolanthe 1915
Earl of Mountararat Broadway Iolanthe 1915
Fleta Broadway Iolanthe 1915
Leila Broadway Iolanthe 1915
Lord Tolloler Broadway Iolanthe 1915
Phyllis Broadway Iolanthe 1915
Private Willis Broadway Iolanthe 1915
Queen of the Fairies Broadway Iolanthe 1915
Strephon Broadway Iolanthe 1915
The Lord Chancellor Broadway Iolanthe 1915

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