The Sun.
London, England, 1864-04-26 00:00:00

Mr. Alfred Wigan as Hamlet,

The Liverpool Daily Post publishes the folio ivisg
W criticism on Mr. Wigan's impersonation of Olet
at the Prinee of Wales's Theatre, Liverpool, °li
Friday night—‘‘ While Mr. Wigan's Hamlet roust
i
necessarily, like all others, fall short of one's ideal'
there are scarcely any that can contest the Pall
with it. It was once said by a clever periodic'
critic in the New York Vanity Fair' that to PlB/
comedy well a man should be a tragedian. t,bne
saying seems a paradox, but it is not far from t"';
truth; and as a companion to it, we assert wicbt
qualification that no mere tragedian can touch
part of Hamlet, and that an excellent comedian 1169
some of the prime essentials for distinction in it.
Hamlet is the glass of fashion and the mould of furl3l;
He is pleasant with those before whom he does 0°
affect madness, and jocose even with those wi1°113.6
he would deceive into thinking him insane. IP
s'gnificantly respectful to his stepfather, sincerel
tender to his mother. Even the poor players 00
in him a cheerful and chatty friend, and even lbit
sneakishness of Rosencrantz and Guildenstein
not provoke him unto unkindness towards till'
How great then is the necessity for the light°l
softest acting, replete with the genuine spirit 110
tact of comedy and mobile in the utmost degree 'f
give expression to the constantly varying details 00
the text. Such an actor is Mr. A'fred IVs~' lit
and all the less serious passages of the play ere
up by his lively, gay, and brilliant idiosyncrssii;
But this, though an important element in /1.0
impersonation, is, after all, a mere fringe to 10
-for the essence of Hamlet is, of course, his g fee.
sorrow and his overmastering impulse of
venge. Whatever may be his passing ocec•er
don or subject of converse at the mention. °
thought of his father's death, he must besome ef;
cited to the verge of losing self-control ; and, of
course, the more exciting incidents of the plat
necessity plunge him into almost limitless treflte
Here, then, we perceive two requirements for
actor of Hamlet almost equally imperative. I e,,,°110
Mr. Wigan is not yet what he might be. 00
other he possesses more remarkably than per.13913`0
any other Hamlet. At the close of the pietll3 co
exhibited. a free abandon of grief which would 136i0
raised the soliloquy in the second act very touill;
al
our opinion, but as a rule the tumultously emoi -14110;
passages were not given with sufficient power. Pes
the more subtle effects of voice and face in pass °goo.
less directly concerning his father's death and it °if,
sequences were produced with a vigour, an into' 51 to
and a thrillingness which we do not renaenahl foto
have seen equalled. In the middle of another pets °ltg
speech some far-off allusion would suffice to Viol
into Mr. Wigan's face an expression of won,3er •
agony and perplexity, and the modifications ~f
of
voice and accentuation under various degraisoy
mental suffering are exceedingly fine. We will ;fit
enter into details. With this key to the s Y •if
ssi
of the performance our readers may °-,,tbe
obtain by glancing at the play a fair idea 0. 'out,
manner in which each portion of it was carried I p's
The fifth act was a noble culmination. Mr.lirilria
fencing was splendid, and his visible 001'001
from his wound, and the various details of hiss bet
conversation with those about him, contained -tot
we consider a welc]me importation froto. sa
French school of melodrama in which Mr.
nether
has long been a celebrated licentiate. Altok
his Hamlet is exceedingly fine and powerful'
that on the first attempt he should attain such
high point of excellence is proof bow thoro,o
master he is of everything connected with his 6

evening last, at the Red Lion, 1041.1,-°l3'
Saturday
FOUND DROWNED.—An inquest was held :u
Leominster, before Mr. Lanwarne coroner, pon tlic :"
London. From what transpired before'
orefaNdlr James Skeggs, of No. 3, Sur' rey-plaerceuWauelscc°
ittilr-
appeared that the deceased, in
the
core9e
with his wife,
leit London about three weeks or acommotanhy ,ouP9ll t',:isii
to his father-in-law, Mr Speake, of month
Is°"-joilel;
ha Shropshire.. On the evening of the sth of the present 91°-"ltt 5
was missed from Cheney, and on its being known present gold
ha d about £lO in his possession, and also a handsome a
watt;: h and chain, some fears were entertained that Ile IP'd
become' the victim of foul treatment. Bills were circula.te
and a r 8 ward offered for any information respectinig,llo.
The dismvery of a blue velvet cap upon the bank 01 0
river Lugg, about two tailcs below Leominster, and the same
distance from the spot where the body of Count do NrYt
ozdi
was found fast year, led to the supposition that the b .
might be in tie Lugg. Drags and boats were obtained, but
all efforts were it nitless till Friday morning last. The roe_
then employed La dragging for the body were resting en
Ford's bridge, wi)e,a looking in tbe direction ut the Wadi
they saw what appek red to be the body of a 111'°. gerl._,
I iating down the strek m. It was at once identified o the
body of Mr Skeggs. T 1 ere was found upon the body
about
£6 Jr £7 in gold and age ild watch and chain It bore
marks of violence. There was no evidence produced beforo
the coroner to show how deceased got in the tiler,
1 verdict was pronounced of ‘‘‘Found drowned,"