The Northern Daily Times.
Liverpool, Merseyside, England, 1857-05-26 00:00:00

THE AMPHITHEATRE.

7 FIRST APPEARANCE OF MR. T. C. KING-.

Mr. King, of whom we have already spoken as an actor
of high rep'ite in many of the provinces, made his first
appearance in Liverpool, at the Amphitheatre, last night.
The house was not so well filled as we could have wished,
but, at the same time, it must be remarked that Mr.
King's appearance here was not heralded by any of those
clamorous demands upon public attention withwhichactors
of late years too frequently take care to have their repu-
tations trumpeted in advance. Mr. King made his debut
in Liverpool in the character of Othello. So many
claimants for honours as great tragedians arise every day,
that a writer is naturally slow in according deckled praise,
but, nevertheless, we feel bound to state that M . King's
performance was thoroughly successful, and that from his
first entering on the stage to the fall of the curtain, he was
able to achieve for himself a distinctive position, marking
him out as among those who have risen above the throng
of aspirants to the name of tragedian. We
cannot at present enter into such an examination of Mr.
King's acting as it would deserve, and as upon an early
occasion it shall receive at our hands. His Othello is
no remodelling of the production of any other actor. It
is the result of the performer's own conception and can-
fel study. The character he embodies is ono less vehement,
less frequently swept by fitful gusts of southern passion
than we are usually shown by those who undertake the
representation of Othello. Mr. King impersonates a
dignified and a chivalrous being, grave, severe, and almost
stern; filled with deep and subdued passion, consuming
but seldom breaking outwards. The actor would seem
to have in his mind not the descendant of a Negro line of
chieftains refined, although scarcely changed by Christian
civilisation, but the Moor of history who taught the
Christian letters and arts, and whose fame in the battle-
field outwitted even • the renown of the Cid. This
type of character the actor rendered throughout
with dignity, and with the unexaggerated expression
of deep, but powerfully restrained passion. We must
add, that in addition to other physical advantages, Mr.
King posssesses a magnificent voice, capable of giving the
fullest effect to all the changing tones of pathos, of anger,
and of despair. The enthusiastic applause of the audience
declared Mr. King's performance a genuine success. Mr.
Lunt was too vehement and declamatory to accord with
our ideas of /ago. Miss Page played Desdemonia grace-
fully, although with somewhat of a mincingness of delivery
which frequently marred the expression of language so
simple and natural. Miss Marriott's Emilia was worthy
of this lady's high repute, warm-heartetl, hot-tempered,
and full of words, but not the coarse and shrewish being
actresses too often seem to conceive /ago's wife to be.
Mr. Villiers played Roderigo with much credit. To-
night Mr. King appears as ingomar, Miss Marriott being
Parlhenia. Mr. King will appear daring the week? as
Hamlet, Richelieu, Romeo, and other characters. The
German dancers are also performing at the Amphi-
theatre at present.