The New Orleans crescent., 1869-01-17
sympathise with mediooity, for II does not offend

/ - 30 - WIZ "ooioclfy, Tor u does not offend
The difficulty of rendering shakspearean drama
satisfactorily Is inherent in its yerv charac-
ter and structure. Nota star but constellation
Of esys 70 RiS well
l "Othello" or Julius Cesar" or the "Mercbant NJ
| Venice"--what wretched shame 10 see Rootb or
Lawrence Barrett in the leading part, with poor
stock company mouthing or mamoliEg the other
partsl Now we have actors, il not OF the loftsst
talent, yet of deservediy high reputation with
| whose guidance We could approach the presence
| and breathe the atmosphere of the great msgi-
cian But the difficulty is not TO flll the one lead
ing part, but so many leading parts. II Mr.. Booth
should as minated, open with "Reneo and Juliet''
ana should take Romeo, who would take the fiery
ilyoda. the County Paris or the gallant vivacio is
Mercuao, mat unmatched ideal 30 resplendent'y
brilliant that Shakespeare himself seems rnable {,
keep the lofty fight and leaves a. a study and
unfinished sketch to astonish and saptiyate or
| imagination juliet. too, Is not the least nm.
| represeniable or difficult of Shakspea-es female
| characters. Little more than childin years her
ardent breathings are no mawkish seniimsntaltv of
| bread and butter school girl. high born. bich
bred lady, inexperienced, Unstudied loving with
all the fervor and self-abandonnent Of southern
nature, speaking out in frank kness the deem emo
tions Of first affection guileless as Eve 10 Eden
soft and beautiful as a summer morn. The same
lady has to do Desdemona and Opteia.
Where is she?
Madame Ristori is an accomplished actress.
living tragedienne. Whether thst be 80 or not il
ls not unfair to ask how much of public enthusiasm
is due TO her well selected and admirably work.
ing stock company. True, there was no shin
log talent among them. But they were respec-
table and served at least as very worthy
frame to her pictures. But ehahspearian drama
takes much higher range than that of any
other playwright. Which is really the pure, pro-
found psychological study In other words the
leading character, whether Ottelo, or Ldgos
or Brutus Cdsslus, or Ayltaong SltulOck, the
viDdictive Yet patriotic Jew, or sAntonio, the
courteous Christian gentleman, earsless of life
itself II he but serve his friend Then the sub.
ordinates, each leader in any lesser plsy-Bra-
odntao, Cassie. R0derigo, great julius the envous
Cdscd, OctdUius, the elegant, graceful Bdssdnio.
the lively Gratidn0, huge feeding LaunceIOt.
gether our greatest actors, which 3 so romote
probability as almost to reach impossblity, it
would seem that no theater could stand the
cost. The great theaters of Europe, in which
alone these striking combinations OF highest
talent are possible, are subsdsed either directly
py the government, as in France, St. Peters
burg and Vienna, or indirectly as IN London by
regular SUBSCRIBERS, who thus guzrs GER
tain amount OF revenue. And even with this
large guarantee the London Grand Opera is and
has been for years dead loss; carried on by
managers, who, for the love of fame or from
passion for theatricals have regularly sunk their
private fortunes in the gulf of incalculable ex-
peDse.
Passing the supposition of the highest art render
ing OF Shskspearian drama st any tEeatsr az unat-
talnabe. we may ask whether with MIR. Booth as
acknowledged chief, good stock co:npanyis is TO be
expected? This is certainly a reasonable posi-
blIty. The only drawback being the women.
With the exception of Lady Macbf{a, all shaks-
peare's first ladies in tragedy secondary in the
scheme and progress of the play. Lady Mac
beth alone, though she does not set aer lords fell
intent IN motion, gives substance 10 the shadowy
conceptions OF his brain and tnerg zes him into
actlon. she IS his coequal paEtcipatOr IN his
crimes and in his remorse and their righteous re-
tributioD. Elsewhere the womynare objective or
OF secondary importance. This is tse very con-
verse OF the French tragedy, whose great writer's
bave followed generally the model of the grand
Greek tragedy, and have taken PiRcrd, Electra,
NEEDED, as their types of passion, power and tragic
pathos. Byron, in Sardanspalus," bas par
tally worked out this idea, for though the mon.
arch, as is fitting in Oriental, is tie chief actor.
MyTrhd, the Greek slave, is the center around
which all the real interest of the pay groups aud
distributes Itself. Cen the modern woman swad.
died in conventionslites ever pcssesahe intuition
the force. the intensity, the feeling and the mag
netism needed! Rachel. the actrsss, possessed.
perhaps all the intellectual conditSns, bat what
was Rachel. the woman?
In comedy on the other hand, Shskspeare's first
ladies' are the leading Characters Of ;he piece but
as in bis tragedies, such was his It0fuson of in.
veDtve power, that they are always5iA duplicate
Iaold, ano the lady Oltria Bedtriceand her cousin
Isabella and MdridnG. Where slSl9 we find the
living presentments of this range Il chsractersg
Isabella tasked the matches powets OF Mrs Sid
dons at the zenith of her fame. ,Measure for
Measure" indeed, is play SUI geaeyis. The spirit
OF retributive Justice, human or dSile, which is
The handspring and moral law of iyNgedy is the
idea Of this play which only fails of ie actual ca
tastrophe from the merciful Interpolation of the
3ggreved parties. Where, too, stall we find
Beatrice, daring, free-hearted, ffeer-tongued
maiden withal, and prompt redresseF:of her cou.
SINS wrongs? II is in fact, more difficult 90 give
orm and entity to Shakspesrian female than to
male ideals. We have a most plettfu lack of
actresses. Mrs. Lander is, perhaps; the nearest
approach TO Shakspearian actress that we have
The best stock company for genteGs comedy in
his country-as good. probably, az GIN be found
the Wallack compsuy.E Mr. Lester
Nallsck viii make as good BeIlC3.ck as ever
wore the matrimonial woke, and the. whole com
'aBy will work as smoothly as a veil adjusted
machine. with that harmony and es1,u de corps
or which the :" business" " of that Etuse is cele-
rated. aud ii must be of interest even to those
Who, condemniDg the drama and Insisting that il
ught TO be school Of morals and Banners, and
OF mere place CT amusement (wSch BY the
Fsy, Is going back to the days when $he mystery
r the amphitheater was the only psblic school
or the masses) reserve their cold patronage until
be days OF regeneration shall come, - know that
laudaDle attempt is to be made. To the theat-
lcsl habitue and to the genuine loyeS Of art the
lovement Is OF supreme moment, and II he ex-
ecis little be will hope all things That combi-
atiohs OF talent are possible Is wthnSthe writer's d
Experience. He has seen Charles kemble, Ma
ready, Vandenbof and Fanny Kefnble on the
cards together in Julius Cesar snd with the
ddition OF Mrs. Glover and Mrs W Vest latter
ards Lady Molesworth;) VIM Farssn (the Sir
'ete'',) Meadows and BARLEY in the g School for
c6ndal.' Those were plays! =
Fleeing joys that pass like sisas.
Yet live for ever in memoryS
ocsAsIoSAL.