The New York herald. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1840-1920, 1858-11-04
The Decline OF the Drama etiremcnt OF
MIR Forrest,


from the pursuit of the actors vocation aud that
ifhe shall appear again before the public il will
he as lecturer upon or professor of elocation.
The retirement of an actor who has held 30 pro
minent place before the public as that which
Mr.. Forrest has filled is an event Of no small i'm
portance in the art world Still, it is one which
might have been expected. The truth IL that
the old love for the theatre and for what is called
the Legitimate drama has pretty nearly died ont
both in the United States and in Europe Shaks-
pere, nowadays, belongs rather to the library
than to the stage, and the dramatists who pre-
ceded him are rarely heard Of before the foot
lights. AT rare intervals some aspiring youth
may attempt the elaboration Of Sir Giles
Overreach for the delectation Of select circle
of antiquarians, but the invariabe iadffer-
ence Of the paying public, and the inevitable
poverty Of theatrical heroes, cause these essays to
be after the manner Of angels visits few and far
between. The public, in fact, prefer just now
to laugh with Thalia rather than to weep with
Mclpomone The opera is the fashionable amuse-
mcnt of the day; and next to that, English COM
edy, farce, burlesque, or the modern style of
serio-comc drama, which the English and Amer
lean play writers have clumsily initiated from
the French. As there is no demand for tragedy
there is of course no supply. We do not know
of theatrical company, either here or in Eng
land, that is capable of giving good represen-
tation of any work in the British classic drama,
which, according to Ben Jonson, did so take
q.
like Mr.. Forrest or the elder Walack, we dis
cover "iifty robustious, periwig pated fellows"
who have not the slightest idea oproooS to tn
details Of their art. The old school of art
actors has vanished. 1t is not our purpose
to discuss the question as to whether or not we
should have been benefited had they remained
with US, or had their places been properly filed
by the young men of the present day. The fact
that they have disappeared, and that their rem
p'acants have not appeared as yet, is quite suif-
Gent Mr.. Forrest himself retires perhaps, for
the reason that there is no theatre in New York
where he can be properly supported. He has
wealth in abundance, and has drunk the cup OF
fame to the dregs. No actor since Shakspere s
day has received more adulaton on the one
hand, or more abuse on the other, than Mr.. For
rest. No hero of the sock aud buskin has en-
joyed more uninterrupted series of triumphs
than he. For thirty-two years he has been the
prime favorite with the play-going public, and,
with but a limited repertoire, he has preserved
hold upon their affections equal to
that which has been enjoyed by the
most brilliant lights in the histrionic world Gar
rick, who was especially favored 10y fortune, and
who was manager a. well as an author and
actor, retired after thiry-fve years of theatrical
life. Macklin, who died centcnarian. acted
during sixty-four years; Talma was Emperor Of
the Theatre Francois thirty-fve years. Edmund
kean died in the harness after career of twenty
years. Macready retired thirty six years after he
made his dftfa upon the London boards Booth
was thirty years before the public. and Walack.
who is now conducting the affairs Of his theatre
in this city with all the vigor of middle
life made his first appearance in London ffty-
two years ago. OF all the foregoing, only Talma
Forrest, Booth and Kean have pursued their art
without intermission for any cause whatsoever.
Some OF them have been authors or managers,
others have retired from the stage for several
years, and have been seduced to return by the
odor of the lamps, the sweetest perfume for
artistic olfactorics. Forrest is the ouly sur
vfvor of the quarteite We have last
mentioned, and when he retires there is no one
TO replace him. The same dearth Of tragedians
has been experienced in England and since the
days Of Rachel people only visit the Theatre
francais-as they went twenty-five years ago
either as a good place for a lounge, oEas a capi-
tai locale for post prandial nap. We ere quite
well aware that in London Mr. Charles Kean has
revived certain Shaksperian piece and tina. the
ensemble Is very good; but that il ALL The act
ing is barely mediocre. The attraction Of Mr..
Kean's Shaksperian rc,iyals l. IN the work OF the
talors and the scene painters, rather than In the
brains Of the actors. In France since The Italian
drama, with Rstori and Salyini, The muse Of
tragedy wears short potiicoats and courts
Terpsichore in plays which are called pieces des
ErHmes. but which should he termed p,ece, de-
jop,bss. The world Of the greenroom has jus,
now fallen upon one Of those pauscs
in the history of the stage where
r@"' eita VI kihhu dIn-l IL HteQe0 10
awaken the public interest in the classic
drama.
We have no doubt that Mr. Forrest sees this
inanity on the part Of the cultivated public, and
does not, therefore. feel that IL i proper for him
TO prop declining drama. lie might have the
largest theatrical career OF any Of the great
actors, rs he has barely turned ff,y and has
frame Of iron, with nerves OF steel He is cs-
seniially ali American actor. and a. thoroughly
one Of us as Macrcady was entirely British.
Neither of them ever ai,aped that perfection Of
art reached by Rachel and Ristori, and became
cosmopolitan. Still. Il cannot be denied TO Mr..
Forrest that this chronic nationality OF his Is a
grsud thing. His siyl, j. massive a. our moun-
hins, broad - our prari grand az the rolling
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