New-York daily tribune. [volume] (New-York [N.Y.]) 1842-1866, 1855-03-20
THEA TRICAL.
MIR EDWIN FORREST AS HAMLET.


Wien the DANISH CT ronicle of Sa1o Gfammascus,
with the romantic story Of Ameleth was first read by
Shakspere. the wondrous resemblance it bore to
story of his own oay in which the beautiful but I'M
fortuna.e Mary of Scotland, the murdered Darnley,
the paramour Both9en, and the youthful james wsre
the leading characters, came go wildly to his imasi-
paiop that he at opce pre- sented the thought to his
virgin mistress, Elizabeth, and Hamlet was the pic
ture As the Winters Gale was c,ined in that cunning
brain to refine the guilt of Anne 0oleyn, and the Mid
summer Night Ore To CRAFTY the vanity Of Souan
Sovereign 1T the expense Of her rvsl-as Rchrd the
Third was framed TO atter the pre- adce Of the Ian
cssriaps, and the Merry Wives of Windsor to please
the pleasant fancy OF pie asant Cour-so wa, born
the beautiful creation of Hamlet. Tnere is much
reason to believe hat Shssspere was Celt, for he
had all the devotion Royalty and fertile fancy of the
race How different from Scoiler, who makes his Mar
quis of Posa defy The gloomy tyraDny of Philip, and
slorn his favors But still he had revenge on the age
"a which fste had confined his all glorious intellect in
tie fascinating righteousness and discerning humsni
~ with which he ccourged the vices aud folles
Of bis hour, and strangely Of those most With
whom he mott associated. Perhaps in no production
of his genius is this 80 patent as in Hamlet.
Fancy a youth OF a high elevation Of thought, Of
IRENE genteness Of spirit and eeness Of disposition;
with the most brilliant aod cultivated talents; an i'm
aenation trans cendentally vivid and strong, with
powerful nuitive know ledge of mankind; and adding
TO all this, q glowing e1aberance Of spirits which
ever lights I'D his arkest hours Of sorroT. AT one
tine tender affable, courteous, graceful, conten-
plstye at another time an; mated with the keenest
feelings anatosng the characters OF others, scruti-
MIXING his own full of thought about all around HIN,
yet always conscious of its bearing upon bis own nd''
yiduslity and, above all, continually nursing in the
depth of his mind his ideal Of Heaven and Humanity,
sud rejoicing or sorrowpg just in the proportion as
the passing hour falls short or is in harmony vito that
ideal. At times all wrath and fire, glancing scorn'
fully dswn as if from superb orb upon al that
l. n an and little Resent nenf, revenge tsrce indig-
psa,D ir biln' one moment at the next, comes the
unbending and reco OF passion. And thea his nature
exhausted by the ceaseless surging of the raging
thought within, bewildersd by the singulsrty of his
position in reference 10 all that is going on around
him. falls back upon its nature If mellow geaneuess
to weep tbabe feel and think so much and do 30
litt G. 10 sob like Samfon when his strength goen
from him. God TO conceive, but less thsa nan TO ex'
oout. A man Of intense feeling burniog thought low
ing sst given to dream, think study learn. love and
emile Passive in everything, active in nothing ex-
eept in thinking An idesst of the Seventeenth Gen.
tsr!. Swedenborg in embryo, Faust, Wert'er. Byron
srd Shah,pere, all put together and brought up at
Coat, make Ha Met. Hamlet, with the SOU Oh Tic
brew, the mind OF German, the heart OF woman,
tie imagination of On Italian, has English humor and
common senfe enough to see now all his comohauon
Of Qualities balance each other 50 nicely thar eisso
they can, but act they cannot and he laughs at himself
OCCASIONALLY. He not actually mad, but it makes nm
MAD 10 think that his reason Is 90 strong and that all the
Ore OF his imagination csnno, consume it, Itmskes him
mad to think thai he cannot 90 mad; and while he
rsgef right and LEFT. be watches all The time himself
ul he Included in bis person two bsings; one, the