Rip van Winkle is a popular American short story by Washington Irving written in 1819. It is set in the Catskill Mountains where Rip falls asleep for 20 years and awakes to a changed world. Throughout the 19th Century it was frequently adapted for the stage. This photograph shows the versatile performer, Fred Storey, in the title role, having awakened.

Fred Storey (1861?-1917), a remarkable actor, dancer and scenic artist, was a member of an artistic family. His uncle, G.A Storey, was an academician; his daughter, Sylvia, a Gibson Girl in The Catch of the Season (1906), married into the aristocracy. Having been a member of the Girard troupe, he went on to perform in pantomime and musical comedy, as a music hall act and in burlesque. He was noted as a comedian in movement, being an eccentric dancer and impressive mime. Storey was sensitive to working conditions in the theatre and campaigned for improved conditions performers, particularly in respect of agents’ fees. Storey also features in what is often said to be the first narrative film made in Britain, The Soldier's Courtship.

Storey became a key interpreter of the role of Rip van Winkle for over 25 years. He began by playing a Dwarf in the musical comedy version of the tale, staged in 1882 at the Comedy Theatre, but soon graduated to the title role, appearing as Rip in drama, operetta, burlesque and dance. By the end of his career he had been seen in the part throughout Britain. When he appeared in the danced version at the Alhambra, the Era, 1 August 1896, p.16, said:

The character lends itself easily to interpretation in dumb show, but it needs a master of the art like Mr. Storey to fully develop the pantomimic possibilities of the part. In his indication of Rip’s weakness in the first act, in his expression of surprise, amusement, and terror when confronted with the strange beings on the Kaatskills [sic], and of bewilderment and puzzled distress, Mr. Storey was superb...'