Renaissance Women: Edna Lewis Thomas

Edna Lewis Thomas (1885-1974) was a stage actress during and after the height of the Harlem Renaissance.

For Further Reading:

• Edna Thomas, Lloyd Thomas & Olivia Wyndham Residence
• Edna Thomas collection
• 1936: Macbeth With an All-Black Cast Plays Bridgeport

This Black History Month, we’re talking about Renaissance Women. As part of the famed cultural and artistic Harlem Renaissance movement, these women found beauty in an often ugly world.

History classes can get a bad rap, and sometimes for good reason. When we were students, we couldn’t help wondering... where were all the ladies at? Why were so many incredible stories missing from the typical curriculum? Enter, Womanica. On this Wonder Media Network podcast we explore the lives of inspiring women in history you may not know about, but definitely should.

Every weekday, listeners explore the trials, tragedies, and triumphs of groundbreaking women throughout history who have dramatically shaped the world around us. In each 5 minute episode, we’ll dive into the story behind one woman listeners may or may not know–but definitely should. These diverse women from across space and time are grouped into easily accessible and engaging monthly themes like Educators, Villains, Indigenous Storytellers, Activists, and many more. Womanica is hosted by WMN co-founder and award-winning journalist Jenny Kaplan. The bite-sized episodes pack painstakingly researched content into fun, entertaining, and addictive daily adventures.

Womanica was created by Liz Kaplan and Jenny Kaplan, executive produced by Jenny Kaplan, and produced by Grace Lynch, Maddy Foley, Brittany Martinez, Edie Allard, Carmen Borca-Carrillo, Taylor Williamson, Sara Schleede, Paloma Moreno Jimenez, Luci Jones, Abbey Delk, Adrien Behn, Alyia Yates, Vanessa Handy, Melia Agudelo, and Joia Putnoi. Special thanks to Shira Atkins. Original theme music composed by Miles Moran.

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Episode Transcript

Speaker 1 (00:00):
Before we get started, just a warning that this episode
contains mentions of rape. Hello. I'm Elia Yates and I'm
a producer here at Wonder Media Network, and I'm so
excited to be guest hosting this week's episodes of Womanica.
This Black History Month, we're talking about Renaissance women as

(00:22):
part of the famed cultural and artistic Harlem Renaissance movement.
These women found beauty in an often ugly world. Today,
we're talking about a remarkable actress known as the First
Lady of Negro Theater, a woman who, throughout her career
advocated for black theater to be taken seriously and brought
complex and fully realized Black characters to the main stage.

(00:46):
Let's talk about Edna Lewis Thomas. Edna was born in Lawrenceville, Virginia,
in eighteen eighty five. In Her origin story is a
painful one. Her mother worked as a maid for a
white family and was raped by a member of the household.

(01:06):
That man was Edna's father, and she never spoke of him.
She grew up in Boston, where money was tight and
hardships were plentiful. When Edna was still quite young, she
had a short lived marriage that left her widowed. Not
long after, Edna met and married the artist Lloyd Thomas.

(01:28):
The pair moved to New York City around nineteen sixteen,
drawn in by the murmurings of lively black culture that
was finding its home north of Central Park. Edna's first
job in the city was secretary to one of the
matriarchs of this cultural moment, the iconic beauty entrepreneur Madame C. J. Walker.

(01:49):
Madam Walker introduced Edna to the social circles in Greenwich
Village and Haarlem, surrounded by all the poets, sculptors, novelists, actors, dancers,
and instrumentalists. In Harlem. At the time, the creative energy
uptown was intoxicated. Perhaps that's what led Edna to try

(02:10):
her hand at acting. In nineteen eighteen, she joined the
Lafayette Players, the country's first professional black theater company. Soon,
Edna would become a staple of the Harlem theater scene.
In nineteen twenty six, she made her Broadway debut in

(02:32):
the controversial show Loulabelle. The story follows a black sex
worker from Harlem who seduces a married white man, a
plot line that scandalized audiences. By nineteen thirty, Edna and
her husband, Lloyd, had moved into a spacious co op
apartment at eighteen ninety seventh Avenue in Harlem. But while

(02:53):
Edna enjoyed professional success, her personal life was fractured. Lloyd
didn't pay Edna much attention, and rumors swirled that he
was gay and that their marriage was one of convenience,
but he also had affairs with other women too. This
loveless arrangement became more comfortable for Edna once she met

(03:15):
British socialite and photographer Olivia Wyndham. The two met at
a party in nineteen thirty and Olivia was immediately infactuated
with Edna. After six months of courting, Olivia moved in
with Edna and Lloyd into their apartment. Edna and Olivia
were lovers, and Lloyd was their roommate who hosted lovers

(03:35):
of his own, and thanks to Olivia's family wealth, the
unconventional trio lived comfortably. Edna's most famous acting role came
in nineteen thirty six, when she played Lady Macbeth in
an all black production of Macbeth directed by Orson Wells.
There was so much hype leading up to the production

(03:55):
that by the time opening night came, around ten thousand
people were lined up outside the Lafayette Theater waiting to
watch Edna and her fellow Thesbians performed to sold out
audiences for twelve weeks. Edna commanded the stage in a
crown and puff sleeved gown fit for queen. Reviews from

(04:17):
the Harlem Press named her the first Lady of Negro Theater.
Not much is known about Edna's life after this period.
Historians estimate that she, Thomas, and Olivia lived together on
Seventh Avenue until at least nineteen forty two. At some point,
Edna moved to an apartment on West twenty second Street.

(04:41):
In nineteen seventy four, Edna passed away. She was eighty
eight years old. All month, we're talking about Renaissance women.
For more information, find us on Facebook and Instagram at
Wamanica podcast and shout out to Jenny and Liz Kaplan
for letting me on the mic. Talk to y'all tomorrow