The National Register.
London, England, 1816-10-07 00:00:00

'2;B

THE DRAMA.

• DRURY-LANE.

On Monday night, Mr. Kean supported the part of
Othello, in which he displayed all that unremitting,
overwhelming force, for which he is. so remark-
ably distinguished. Mr. Bengough pertbrmed logo,
but he was cold, feeble, and powerless. Being respec-
table in an humbler line, he should endeavour to keep
his respectability by not attempting characters beyond
Lis reach.

On Thursday evening, Mr. Kean acted Macbeth to a
crowded house. As usual, he was rapturously ap-
plauded : and Mrs. Bartley received many tributes to
her merit in the bold and difficult character of Lady
Met he! h. To the play succeeded O'Keefe's farce of
The 1 ilacksinith of Antwerp. The plot is simply this :
Quintin Matey', who leaves the trade of a blacksmith for the pro-
fession of an artist, is enamoured of the daughter of VW? Dinentherk,
with whose son ANTI iv,goes to Home for four rears, at the end of
which time he returns the first painter in Flanders. lie and his
companion reach Antwerp, just as old Dip.ntherk is about to give his
daughter to a Dutch Knight of the pencil, Van Dmadeinna, whom
the Blacksmith eventually supplants, by giving proof of superior
talents.

The music is composed and selected by Mr. T. Cooke,
and the following song, delightfully sung by Mrs.
Co,:ke, was loudly encored.

SONG—Ade/a, Mrs. COOKE.

Beside the low grot, where the streamlet meanders,
Methought. as soft slumber, o'ershiulow'il mine eye.
Lightly wing'd as the zephyr from Heaven that wanders,
Young love, crown'd with roses, flew playfully by.
From his infantine brow, by the Graces anointed,
All dropping with odours the chaplet he drew;
W ith a soul.beamingtanile,to the flow'rets he pointed,
And said •• lovely maid ! shall I leave thtxn with you ?"
I had heard of his arts, but now thought not of danger,
His arrows he wore not, he wielded no bow;
I grin in return to the air-tripping ranger,
And blush'd like the roses lie wanton'd to throw :
1 caught them—l press 'd to my Bosom the treasure—
Alas ! the sharp sting to its mission was true :
4. Ah, the thorns !" I exclaim'd, while he shouted with
pleasure'—
Adieu, pretty victim! I leave them with you I"
The piece was well received throughout.
COVENT-GARDEN.
The Tragedy of The Italian Lover ha; been
revived at this Theatre for the purpose of ex-
hibiting- Mr. Alacready in the character of Mentevole.
This Drama has been so seldom acted on the London
stage, that a history of the plot may not be unaccepta-
ble to many of our readers. /t is, however, proper
first to remind them, that this piece was written by Mr.
Jephson, and produced in 1787 ; and that it is founded
on an occurrence, which took place many years ago in
Italy.
_ _ .

Mentevole, a Nobleman of Genoa, the lover of Julia, has assas-
sinattl his favourite rival, Clawlino, and continues unsuccessfully to
jolead his cause with the lady. Marcellus, the brother of Claudio,
returns from the wars, and also sues for the hand of Julia. This in-
flames the jealousy of Mentevole, who challenges Marcellus, and
urges the fiery temper of Fulvia, the mother of his rival, to break off
all communication with Julia, by slanders which he propagates against
her. Mentevolc, in his combut with Alarcellus, is disarmed. Mean-
while Olympia. sister of Mentevole, having found a picture (which
her brother had dropped) of Julia, lavishly adorned with, jewels, lays
it in the chamber of the lady, in the hope of moving her by this in-
stance of his fondness picture is found there by Fulvia, who
recognizes it as one which her murdered son had woo. In the heat of
passion she accuses Julia as well as Mentevole to the I)uke. The
innocence of Julia and the guilt of Mentevole are discovered—but the
assassin in despair, after upbraiding his mistress as the cause of his
guilt and of his misfortunes, stabs her."

The merits of this piece consist chiefly in the smooth-
ness and poetical elegance of its style. The characters
of Nentevolx, Julia and Fulvia, however, are ably drawn.
Indeed Julia has been esteemed one of the most perfect ho-
mines on the stage. Mild, grateful, anti affectionate, she
is a miracle of constancy to the lost object of her love ; and
only roused to assert herself where she feels, that vio-
lence has bean offered or is threatened to that melan-
choly and sacred passion. Fiilria displays lofty and
dignified passion ; while the character of Men/mile, a
emnpomul of ardent love and furious jealousy, is, sketched.
with a bold and discriminating hand.
The moral of this piece teaches, that, however se-
oretly crimes may be committed, there is a power from
whom nothing is hidden, and who, in his own peculiar
time, will avenge the innocent, and reward the guilty
with a punishment commensurate with their crimes.—
There is one defect, however, in this play, seldom to-
lerated by un English audience. It has little to strike
the imagination ; and no episode to relieve attention :
the story is languid ; and having but one incident, and
that ihreseen from beginning to the end, there is, as
some. of the critics have observed, much to be said, but
too little to be done.
It now remains to estimate Mr. Macready in the cha-
racter of Menlevole. His powers, unquestionably, are
of the first order; but Menlevole has not sufficient
variety to elicit them. He frequently succeeded
in warmly exciting the feeling of his audience ; he co-
lours highly, but not always with sufficient judgment :
in the first scene with Darazzo, and in that with 0/ym-
pia ; in his reneountre with Marcel/us ; and above all. in
the trial scene, he displayed fiweible exhibitions of scenic
talent. But he has one limit, imitated from Kean, viz.
a sudden transition from the highest pitch of lofty and
impetuous utterance, to a low, hurried, and familiar
xrllich we might almost call a

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