The evening telegraph. [volume] (Philadelphia [Pa.]) 1864-1918, 1866-12-13
RIsTOR1 AS aaUEEN ELIZABETH"

IN her tmpersOnatiOn of this character Ris
iris,ooS to the very acme of histrionic excel
%. sbe leaves us nothing to desire. Her
own indiyidualh,v is merged and lost in the
strangely varied ana singularly contradictory
nature of England's greateS queen. III 'n's
role Rlstori is not Rstori; she Status oeiore uS
the choleric, impetuous, vain, capriCious 1augn-
ter of Henry VIII. But in so faithfully pol'
traying the faults and hereditary weak
nesses of the true daughter of bluff King Hal"
Ristori's great genius never permits us TO lose
sight of that great masculine mind that for
fOrtyFour years swayed the English sceptre with
apower regardless OF the Constitution" and
an indomitable viii, that made the boldest
hearts In all the land sink abashed sin its
rebuke.r
We are carried back three entire centuries
The present passes from " utterly. We live in
an age gone by. With the compelling power of
her great genius, Ristor leads us on. We are
passive in the hands Of This "enchantress" as
she unfolds to our fascinated gaze the living,
breathing history of the great past'
No subtle shade in the character of "Elza-
BETH is forgotten. Now she stands before us
trembling hand, the sword oil the EIgntn henry,
and hurting the scabbard from her, with her
fingers on the naked blade, breathes the oath
that annihilates Spain forever. Again she is all
woman, cOquettng with her favorite, the i'm
petuous earl of Essex" We catch, anon,
quick startling glmpses of the hidden woman's
heart, that throbs, almost unconsciously
to herself, with a deep, abiding, though un-
acknowledged love for the rash young Earl who
''cast his all upon de" and lost the stake.
Ristori bears us on-we follow her-"Mary
Stuart Is eXecuted-we see "Elzabeth'sr feigned
grief and exulting heart-the Spanish Armada
Is dispersed-the coDquering heroes return,
"Howard," "Drake," "EsseX"-the royal hand
of the august Queen showers honors on all but
the one most deeply loved-"Essex" is disgraced.
Then follows a scene which battles description.
The injured and indignant Earl upraids his un-
grateful mistress, and, blinded by rage, insults
her in the presence of her entire court With
the unguarded fury that swayed her utterly
when the spirit of Henry the Eighth rose
highest in his daughter, elizabeth" strikes
"Essexn on the cheek, and demands his sword.
He casts it in broken fragments at her feet
Choking with grief and rage, she shrieks out
TO the Tower! To the Tower!j
All is over, and he has given the death-blow
to her love-all the deeper for the stern will
that controls it-and sinks back overpowered
with anguish and horror. No pen can do JUS
tice to Ristors exquisite rendition of the con-
ficting emotions of this scene Then follows
the sharp and quick remorse. The yearning,
hoping, watching agony, for "the ring" that
shall restore to her her banished love.
1t comes not to her wish. Once more
the demon pride triumpbs over her better
nature. She signs the death-warrant of the
noble and unfortunate Essex The wild agony
of eagerness to reach that fatal mandate, when
''too late" was terrible to witness, and the cur
tain fell over the bold brow grovellng in the
dust, and the proud form writhrng in impotent
md vain remorse.
When next "Englands proud maiden Queen"
ppesrs before US, it is when years and unavail-
grief have swept all youth and glory from
-er brow.
mortal sickness preys upon her heart and
life. cauker gnaws within. Rstori gives us
worn decrepit, querulous, repining woman.
Yet the iron will asserts itself still. She
will fight with death, and hold
her own to the last. Her Ministers
implore her to name successor. She rebels;
drives them from her presence; she would be
.alone-alone to yield, unmatched, to her
womans heart, to her bodily weakness, to the
terriers of her spectre-haunted soul! Alone
she must die, unbeloved, unpitied, unwept
Inen comes the DlIteI WdNe hOOeFtO ItOUeTtO !
decapitdto per ordine n1iOl"
The malady conquers. At length, with un
willing hand, she places the crown on the brow
OF the kneeling James the Sixth. The populace
shout without, "Long live King James," In a
transport of jealous fury she snatches the
diadem from the head of the awe-struck king,
and placing it once more on her own worn, dis
hevelled locks, rears her emaciaLed form to its
full he ght, and enunciates with all the old
imperial pride, I"Io sOno Re dnoora."
But it is but the flames last flash. The
ghastly hues of death overspread the contract
ing features. The form sinks; the pale lips wall
out, for the last time, the never-to.b forgotten
name, 'Roberto," and England's greatest Queen
is no more.
Ristori's costumes in this character were
as perfectly historical as her acting,
and never on any stage has such a
wealth of gems lent its brilliance to adorn a
genius that must forever outshine their
highest splendor. Giacomo Gleck's rendition OF
Sussex" was worthy of great praise. In correct
conception and earnestness of delivery he gave
us most life.lke portrait of the rash Essex"