New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1872-11-19
THE DRAMA.

THE DRAMA.
BooTu's THEATER-MIss NELSON AS JULIET.
| Miss Adelaide Nelson made her first ap.
pearance the American stage last evening at Booths
Theater and In the presence Of about twenty-five hun
dred persons acted shakespeares Juliet The piece
upon the stage with tho scenes and dressed
with the costumes. that used the wclirc-
membered opening night Of the theater-upwards Of
| three years ago-when Romeo and Juliet F." was hero
for the first time represented. Those and cos
tumes It is known, vigorously constructed olabo
rate and beautiful and likewise faithfully sugges
tive Of the superficial aspects OF Italian e In tho latter
part OF the sixteenth century The stage custom hai
long been to frame aud attire this tragedy according ia
the time when 1t written and that custom has again
been observed. The result is liie-like portrayal
of places in themselves romantic. but rendered thu
by halowIng associations OF love, longing, al
venture sorrow, patbOs, aud death The Streets Gnr
dens, people, and customs Of old Verona seem almost
as real to the observer Of these pictures they mast
have done her citizens three hundred years ago.
Mr.. Wtham and Mr. Hillyard, we believe, arc TO be
credited with the paintings; Mr. Joyce devised the
dresses and all have done their work with large Intel
lgence correct taste. and true and trustworthy talent
better setting for great work Of art could not h
wished and has seldom been afforded. To call Romeo
and Juliet" @ great play (snce we are speaking oi
Shakespeare 49, perhaps to use an extrayagant
II was written there good reason to think In h
youth and certainly, he scared far above s highest
ended. But 1t Is great in comparison With any sim
liar work Of any other poet tho subject Of youthful
love- and to this theme, 1t bids fair 10 remain forever
the foremost representative picture Every person Of
sensbfity Is how softening and humanizng TIM
tragedy IS In Its n1uencc-bOw deeply 1t mprcsses the
mature mind with a Of the profound earnestness OF
young love- how enderly 1t woOs US to be gentle and
careful toward honest youth and sincere affection.
good performance Of such pece Is well entitled to be
viewed as a public benefit Such performance co
CURED Booths Theaer last night and we cannot 700
warmly commend 1t TO the public attention. Without
claiming that infalbility OF judgment as TO these
matters which affected by certain Of contemporaries
seemingly to edit their neighbOrs well AZ
themselves and prescribe what everybody else shan
think saywe content to testify that Miss Neil
sons mpersOnaton Of Juliet impressed Us faithful to
shakespeares text and plan, an abo copy Of lovely
ideal and whether true OF false. charmngly
sweet embodiment Miss Nelson's juliet Is a
young, beautiful, passionate Italian girl impetuous
in all things, proud but gentle, fiery but
tender caprlcious but true-to whom existence
g. a. ~.,I,ns 10y, ana 70 whom nrst
revelation from heaven We know not what steelliks
intellectual codness may undero all this. That lsno
affair Of ours As the ideal depicted must
accept itand 1t depicted both " spirit and FORM
with all the warmth and all the decacY required by
shakespeares original The actress possesses natural
advantages for the parta fitness to it, that Is, TO
general appearance and temperamcnt-whicb We have
not seen exceed Of late years Femin ne sOftnes per
yades the whole personality that expressed through
the medium OF her art. she does not In other words
appear to be the kind Of woman that wishes 10 60 10
Congress 10 drive omnibus. Her fitness for Juliet
We are free to add. to DO supplemented
and reinforced by artistic faculty and taste.
Though young in years, che is ripe in professional ex
perience. Through the rapidly changing AMI strongly
contrasted scenes that make up Juiiecs career she
moved with the naturaness and precision appertaning
to trained intelligence and conscious power. Her pas
sion, in the glorious baconyscene, wholehearted
and devouring. though beautifully softened with fem
mime coyness and the Of joy ample and rich
that It is rather pensve than eXuberant Her petuanco
and subsequent coaxing in the with her Nurse.
had the unusual but accurate merit OF sincerity, and
these deciousy winning. Her tragic passion, in
the sooquy before taking the drug precisely such
as an imaginative woman, half crazed by sorrow, tIOu
bic, danger and apprehension, might feel In such CIR
cumstances and it not overdone for the sake
OF showing force fact which we take TO 30
Significantly indicative OF artistic Instinct THIS
latter situation is usually regarded the chief test for
the representative Of Juliet To this Miss Nelson
proved equal-hOugh It in the softer rather than
the stormer that she prominently hnc It
not by points, however, but by eyenncss and sim
certify IN the assumption OF identity that Miss Nelson
conquered. Juliet is not part that requires great
actress-but 1t requires a very good One and it
had on this OCCASION of the best that have
come TO these shores. Mss Nelson's personal beauty
has been exaggerated by the portraits of her which
have lately become current She Is slender IN figure,
but not attenuaed: her head is small features
regular: her eyes are dark and luminOus her hair is
brown her mouth is full and sensitiye her voice
is very sweet: and the carriage Of her head
and person denote bright intelligence and
pure refinement that very gratifying 10 the
sense Of that entire beauty which unites moral,
mental and physical cearness and worth She received
great deal Of applause and several times called
before the curtain.-Mr. wheelocks Romeo cold,
served almost eclpsed by tho the mysterious. nexp
cable serepresson Of the actor 1t may have existed in
his mind ideal think 1t did; but it did not take
bold prominence the stage embodied fact Mr..
James W. Wallacks MereutiO-(he is great actor in
some parts but not I'm thslwas forced and fel BILE
One OF the best OF the incidental performances tho
original and clever portrayal OF Peter by MIR. George
Becks There simple, uupretending merit. too. IA
the BeRuoIiO OF Mr. Decker And Sol Smith was excel
lent the apohecary The cast OF the tragedy Is here
appended:
hscaus - fkc nsro
D. Hams AnrahaA '''hen hogsa
Montague. " henn
tspulet. a W feun"
An Oh han..,Ieo Parsons nsDrfs
Romeo. Joseph Mheeoch a go ls,r
deIcntiO. W Matel fsSe " or 10
henVohO.. Nielsen
lynai W, n yonel 80 v, Ns' os~.s
fnir Lawrence, D. W Ns A NaPuhhss Nat heA 1eoe
Free. feTc MIS- Nei
Georse Beck arse 20 Jas~Al. M.rJ Wells
THE LECTURE ROOM
GEORGE MACDONALD ON HOOD.
A r,oet an;ovohIa Iacfure xvaa deIivere1 Last