Northern Times.
Liverpool, Merseyside, England, 1857-07-28 00:00:00

AMUSEMENTS,

THE AMPHITHEATHF
uttAntiES DILLON. —Mr,
Charles Dillon
someleficed a short engagement at the
AmPuttefeatre last night. The greater part of the house
Watt Weil filled. Mr. Dillon, as our readers are probably
aware, obtained recently what must be termed a decided
ctetess in London. The leading journals accorded him
an amount of praise rarely given to the debut of a provin-
cial actor. Not having seen Mr. Dillon for some time
previous to his metropolitan success, we felt strongly
desirous to judge by personal observation, whether his
acting had very much improved since we were accustomed
to witness his performances. We must confess we were
among those who felt not a little at the result of his
appearance in London. Last night Mr. Dillow perfumed
Othello, one of the parts in which he realised much of his
distinction in London. We regret that we cannot echo the
opinions of oar London cotemporaries. The time which
elapsed since last we saw Mr. Dillon perform, does not
appear to have materially changed the character
of his acting. He is not, indeed, an ordinary and
common-place performer, n3r is he without capa-
city of a high order for a peculiar line of
character. But as a Shaksperian actor, as one
fitted to assume the character of Othello, we cannot think
Mr. Dillon likely to achieve permanent distinction. An
entire want of intensity seems to characterise him. An
artist who can express passion in no way but by vehement
and stormy declamation, or extravagant bursts of sobbing,
seems to us less suited for the part of Othello than for
almost any other Sheksvriin character. Mr. Dillon has
made an cffert to shape a new outline fnr the part he as-
eumes, and has succeeded in the immediate object at the
expense of the greater end he should have kept in view. To
endow his character with new pathos, he makes Othel:o
sob—we might almost say, blubber —like an angry woman,
in nearly every scene. To exhibit the passionate nature
of the Moor, Mr..D.llon storms, and raves, and stamps
wherever he cannot conveniently introduce a burst of tears.
Then, as the performance cannot be all vehemence, he is
singularly calm just when one might have thought the
deepest intensity of passion was the very soul of the words
he uttered. There were, no doubt, particular portions of
the performance expressed with natural force ; but, tak en
as a whole, it seemed to us a singularly pe--
verted application of stage art : a performance
conceived in a spirit wholly unlike that of the original,
and filled with extravagances not even in keeping with
the conception. Mr. Dillon's talents—for talents he de-
cidedly has—are better suited for other characters. Hi,
Belphegor, in which he appears to-night, and in which he
won his first success in London, is full of simple and
truthful force and pathos; but the almost hopeless blank
which the close of Macre idy's career has left in the line
of Shaksperian actors is not, we think, destined to be filled
up by Mr. Dillon.

SAM COWELL'S CONCERTS--The first of three concerts,
under the auspices of the wall-known Sam Cowell, took
place in the Teutonic Hall last night. There was a very
numerous audience, and the performances seemed to mast
with full success. The vocalists were Mr. Cowell himself,
Miss Catherine Lucette, Mr. B. Bowler, while Mr. Frede-
rick Bridgeman conducted, and played some beautifully-
executed pieces on the piano. Mr. Bawler has
a fine clear tenor, and sang with power and
skill. Miss Lucette has a rich, sweet voice, well
fitted for the style of ballads she sung. Mr. Cowell's comic
singing seemed, however, to be the especial delight of the
audience. That happy species of humour which consists
of absurd gestures and grimaces, imitations of sea-sick men
and the voices of spinal's, and which is supposed to repre-
sent English comic singing, has an apt professor in Mr.
Cowell, and was vehemently applauded by the audience,