New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1866-11-19
prsrner As pLa DE. r0LOMEL


would have satisfied che widest dreams Of Manager
Crunrnles. There is part in it for every member Of
the family. Nothing would have suited Mr. Crummles
himself better than Rinaldo; Hugo could not
have fallen into aber hands than those Of Mr. Len
ville and there not capital situation even for the
Phenomenon Mrs. Crummles would have found her.
self exs cty suited with the role OF Pia the old Cas-
tellsn is exactly in Lilyyicks way; and the only dis
pute that would have arisen would have been between
Henrietta Petowker and Miss Snevellicc as to which
ahonld lake the character Of the Peasant Girl whose
husband falls victim TO the villanous system OF
drainage practiced by the Agricultural Bureau Of the
Maremma marshes. Nor should we forget TO mention
that so admirably is the plot adapted to the resources
of the Crummles Company, that even the real pump
and ysshing-tub" which Nicholas had 50 much
difficulty in working into his play could have
made triumphant bit in the denoument, They
could have been brought in. just in time, in the
last act to be set up IN the very middle
of the pestiferous marsh and worked vigorously
by the retainsrs of Rinaldo until the last drop Of ys
stsgnation was transferred from the marsh 70 ths
wsshng.tubs when the unfortunate Pa, having hung
for fifteen or twenty minutes on the very verge Of dis
soluton, might have been gradually restored 10 the
misery OF a prolonged existence with her goodor.
nothing husband
The original play, although absurd enough in plot.
il writ in choice Italian" and calls for no literary
criticism, but we must be allowed word as to the
translation which is q remarkable performance. The
task Of rendering into English seems to have been
int1sted to some young person who has recently
undertaken the study Of Italian, and who, after
one lesson and that without master, boldly
attacked Signor Mareng0s masterpiece, with What
result we need hardly say Suffice It that hiS English
il far more more difficult to understand than tue &C
oompanying Italian and reduces the reader-anxi0us
TO know what the ravng warriors. in full aror. pro
tected by white wooden opera-cosks, are saying thai
makes them 80 red in the facet0 mild despair Mr.
Prsv the author OF this translation, has, however.
conferred one favor upon that portion OF the audience
that finds the turning over the leaves OF the bOoko
the.piay an ANNOYANCE. His translation is so utterly
uninteigible as English and 80 useless a. an explain
alton of the play that few persons have am patience
10 struggle with il after the first scene and IN conse
quence the audience is content to watch the sctos Tor
the rest Of the evening and the Penodcal rustic OF
leaVes ia wholly avoided. We wish MIR. Gran would
always employ Mr.. Pray to do" his plays into En-
gIish after this
Rot bad as Marengos play is Ristori makes the
begt Of her part In il; and indeed, ell the actors do
reasonably well considering that nothing IS demanded
Of them but that they should get as far away from
nature as possible. II is not in human nature when
il has once risen above the traditions OF the Bowey
20 be interested in such play, and We doubt angels
were 20 come down and act IN II, whether anything
but the mere curiosity OF seeing how tnat CLASS OF
persons would behave. could keep US vide awake "
The end In the first act, RstOr looks well and acts
well OF course iu real life the course Of events would
have come 10 sudden stand-still with the out
rageous conduct Of Hugo IN this act. Pa being m
her own house would have ordered her men-at-arms
20 shut that improper person up IN DARK mole some
where and kept him there on bread aud water tiIl
her husband came home, when if RinsldO had had any
sense OF what was becoming, be would have chopped
off the oulprits head in less than five minutes kissed
his wife given her a piece OF SILK for new gown.
and everything would have been serene and peaceful
This is what would have happened at the house OF
- NhA lanr "A
critic Of an evening paper, perhaps Mr. Pray himself,
obligingy translates the heroines name for u.s. But,
AZ thin Ss don't 90 So Madam Rstori is obliged 10 con-
form herself to the demands Of Sgnor Marengos com
position and there can be no question that she nils
the part with graceful majesty and with feeling. 10
her acting in this play The TRIBUNE has already dono
ful Justice nor should we again aude to It, II vera
not for the purpose Of expressing our dissatisfaction
with Madame Ristor for undertaking the part at al.
Judging Ristori merely By her fame, It would have
astonshed u.s. after reading this worthless play TO Do
told that she had condescended to 90 through Tho
labor OF learning the part Of Pia But since we have
studied her acting for ourselves and are no longer
Obliged 10 take her upon trust or 20 measure our sp
plsuse By the eOquence Of enthusiastic critics on The
other side the water, there is much to lessen our
surprse She is not an artist OF the highest character
on the contrary. her leanngs are decidedly toward
melo-dramatc effects and sensational situations
Surley if il were not So she would think more highly
of her gifts than to waste them on such plays ~
Pia; and would instiuctvely shrink from the death
scenes that on the contrary she seems 10 delight IN
We trust il is not cant to express our conviction that
genius or talent even especially talent OF such al
order as Ristos gift of God that imposes serious
obligations. person endowed with this gift can only
retain his seirespect, can only Justly clam tho
respect of the world when be uses II for high ends
He ought not to waste his time aud energies upon
anything that will not in some way tend 70 strengthen
high thoughts and noble purposes in his fellows The
same laws that we have asserted for the artist with
chisel and brush ought 20 be acknowledged By the
actor and one is as derelct the other when these
laws are disobeyed. Riston seems 10 us to respect
these laws but little. Her gifts are not TO be ques-
toned Her beauty her voice. her range of express
sive power her intelligence, her culture such
are seldom shut into one being, and II rks us tO
see these powers squandered or put TO vulgar uses
Il is difficult 70 believe that the nobly beautifuf
woman of the opening scenes OF PA, and she OF the
last act are the same person. II the death scene in
" Adrenne" be CHASTITY and painful beyond endur-
ance il is not utterly ridiculous but the death of Pa
is made piece of pure absurdity. That noble lady
should take il into her head 10 walk out int"
the middle of gloomy marsh. where the
only cheerful feature consists OF al array
of crosses stuck into the CRATES Of those who
have died Of malaria and should then aud there re-
main until death 10 fetch her Is absurd on tbs
very face OF il. But II she must die, and insists on
getting into the most uncomfortable place she can
find to do it, We might at least he allowed rgnt !"
insist that she should die and be done with il. But
Rstori has the vulgar notion that il lisa fine thngto
be as long in dying possible and that il s high art
TO expose much OF the disasreeabe physical sgonss
OF death as there is time for So she wheezes In the
most life.like aud malsriops fashion. Two medlesi
students behind us, were so bewltched Win tpo
wheeze that they could hardly repress their enhu'i
ssm. Then she turns up the whites 81 her eyes Ane
hings her arms about and gasps and struggles io'
breath and sinks aud sinks until, her struggling g.
tendsnts being no longer able TO hold her she sls
after the usual fashion with tremendous bong
on the stage She is then dead at last this poor pa
Msremma has been tfectual and the curtain Will iA
IL does no, fall il sticks-pO, what lie The matter
Alas, she ia not yet dead. She revivss and the u