New-York tribune., 1870-09-08
THE ID RAMA.
JULIUS c hsAR At NIBLo's.


MONDAY "eu" "u (which made the place exceedingly
pleasant ANeI large aSsemblage Of persons was CON
gress'eO III V' ,theaer. The house not merely fun
nut l" every part OF it-galeries and a-was denseiy
rr""uen' md the assembly notable one, not less
for hous fsUncss and refinement than for the vener
sontme At of popular arOr. Occasions like this, irngn'
With Spirit Of intellectual vigor and emotional en'ou
siasD1 among the peasantest with which we come
iRto.coutact; and always greet them with gaucS'
ard record them with the veest satisfaction Inc p"'
"JulIus Cesar" It was not presented WIN "'o-
setbcr suitable scenery hut 10 was occd-and 80 IL "s
scat luxury. Asa work Of art 1t Is one OF lho most
snmptuous fruits OF human genius IL is oroiu III is
SCOPE Of vision; accurate in its painting OF times ana
men keen and in its portrayal OF uie reIduoh Vi
conduct o motive; stirring and patheuc III lls pictures
of expcrence noble in its ethical teachings; beautiful
IN m ideals Of character and action and magnificent in
its language To say this seems 10 be reerating the
universal Judgment of mankind, on a work that for
more than two centuries. has been familiar the
stars New words about Shakespeare seldom spoken
Perhaps that is well. Ii is certainly natural The word
for the moment fancy, is word of recognition for
worthy enterprise and the brilliant it has
worthily achieved That word speak with all the
emphasis possible-and speak it from the
heart. What we saw was unusual spectacle
was a gallant, intrepid, manly, intellectual
effort 10 have a great play well acted. And the
effort succeeded Men of rare ability c00perated 10
achieve rare success. With actors who undertake to
first condition precedent that they shah betrue TO their
author and that they shall go back of his ideal to
find and reproduce what they happen TO fancy Is
the kind Of who might have lived IN the particular
epoch OF the play. That condition was fulhed IN the
acting which gave Interpretation to the principal charao
ters in julius CaSsr" One reason, perhaps, is that
poetry and prose of mind with regard to this
tragedy. Those who have compared ShaRespeare's
picture OF the death Of C8Sar with the most veracOus
historical Of the incident and Of the PERIOD are
delighted than surprised at the accuracy Of the
poet While he has given pOetica life-wich is immor-
tatytO the dead record Of dead and gone times and
persons he has been true to facts Thus the representa-
tives Of his characters in this tragedy depend
curey upon their historic knowledge upon their
Imagination and artistic insight. But, however it came
about fun justice was done TO the chief characters
Mr.. l. l.. Davenport appeared as Brtts, and We have
expectation Of seeing truer representative Of
the character BrtuS Shakespeare has painted him,
Of those who view human life as contn
uous whole, and who therefore, give no undue prOm-
t. incidental matters. Such man will be calm,
thoughtful passOness and adamantne in his adherence
the right Mr. Davenport gasped and presented this
ideal He stately a noble elm. He
made ungraceful movement. He never stopped
10 trick for popular applause He seemed as uncOn
scious Of his auditors if they had been in distant
Asia. He filed the conception Of Sha6espcarcs BIuS
and il there he higher praise for him, others must
invent The quiet beauty of the perSOnaOn such
This is age in which many persons recognize merit
solely in the number, size, and briancy of the brass
buttons that a his coat Those who
know what acting is, hOwever-and who this per
formance-wi do justice TO the beautiful symmetry Of
Mr Daveuport's BrHtHS, to its delicate refinement, to
it's manly feeling, and 10 its straightforward natural
ness. The selfpoise Of the gentlema-as Shakespeare
has indicated i-was sustained throughout, and the
sweetness Mr. Davenport Of course, welcomed
with great deal OF applause. At the end Of the first
act indeed he was called before the curainas also
Mr. Barrett, Mr. Mark smith, and Mr.. Walter MontgOm
cry. Mr, Barrett pcrsonaed CGSSuS We say person
ated-and we mean it, Mr. Barrett is man of genius.
have had doubts this point; but those doubts are
removed The actor grasped this part with grip Of
god-with intuition that is; and he moved his sympa-
thetc auditors literal tears of delight The dentifca
tion perfect From first to last 1t sweryed.
Mr. Barrett always CGSSiUs. And CGSSius is a
very complex character to represent He has been
clearly drawn by the poet but he is none the less per
sOnage difficult To reproduce. He is man OF splen-
did intellect and Of very tender heart-tender that is in
all its afnities with what is good Mr. Barrett made
this clear. And he worked up the leading scenes with
admirable skill and with inspiring fervOr. He has prob
ably achieved other fine We doubt If he ever
achieved so fine a this The audience gave
him very cordial testimonial in the way OF applause.
For part we confidently place Nj Barrett-on
the strength Of his CGSSiUS-amOng those artists from
whom is always safe to expect revelations of power
edian. His powers versatile.
Mr.. Mark Smith appeared as Cascd, and was greeted
with a really affectionate welcome. The character
has Ia vein of hunor in il, and vein of bluff
manlness and the basis of it is sterling goodness.
Accordingly, it found in Mr.. Mark Smith most compe
tent representative Those who watch dramatic per-
formances carefully must have been especially charmed
by the thor0u gnness with which Mr.. Smith ted this
part-eyineed among othef waysDy his rupulous pres
ervation OF the identity, and by the excellent by-play
wherewith lac gave reality to every In which he
appeared. The spectacle Of three such Dayen
port Barrett aud Smith, upon the stage at tine is
seldom seen. and i'll itself, is memorable. This
performance must have reminded many observers Of
what may be accomplished by the uncommon expedient
of grouping several talented persons in play 1t is
an expedent seldom tried i'll these days-but the time
may come when theaers will be impossible without it,
Mr.. Walter Montgomery appeared as Mark Antony and
carried the house with him. from the outset He looked
like antony. He mingled the vOluptuary with the man
OF action. He effects. He quiet in the
earlier scenes seemed content to satisfy the eye:
and in the later he with the OCCASION and he
equal it. This is art-and Mr. Montgomery is
artist. He suffering from hoarseness, though and
therefore unable 10 conclude the speech of Anony
the dead body of Cesar but he delivered the great
apOstrOphe to the bleeding earth" to thrill his
hearers, and awaken the utmost enthusiasm.
Two changes were made in the cast. Mr. Theodore
Hamilton played Cesar instead of Mr. Bangs, and Miss
Virginia Buchanan played CGlphurnia, instead Of Miss
Louisa Moore Mr. HanltOn Caesar TO be recorded as
avery creditable effort There should be fneness
of texture in the deneatiOn, however for the
Shakespeare is the Caesar Of fact and lac is well known
70 have been OF the most elegant scholars gen
tlemen Of his time These comments must suffice Very
hastily set down. they may yet serve to do some justice
60 Of the best theatrical representations that New
York has for years.
"Julius Cesar" ought to be played a long time 1t is
true success, and there need OF a change Theater
goers ought 10 make Che management appreciate this
likewise erowdng the house They do not often get
GOOD an eniov "a penuina