The New York herald., 1873-09-17
AMUSEM ENTS.
SignOr salvini rs Othello at the Academy y
OF Music.

| the Academy OF Music last night to witness the
debut In "Othelo" OF Signor Salvini, the great
Italian tragedian. The announcement OF the
coming to this country OF this great actor created
considerable interest IN literary and art circles,
but as the assurance that he was really
| great seemed to be confirmed, something
! like the same interest was excited among the
people, 1t is a singular comment upon the Ameri-
can love for pure art and its appreciation by all
classes that the upper part OF the house was as
| crowded last night as any part OF the auditorium.
! And 1t is even more complimentary to the Ameri-
| can character that the most spontaneous applause
or Savinfs greatest points came from that part Of
the building The necessity playing one Of Shak
speare's masterpieces in foreign tongue, so that
| the American people might see the genius OF its
Italian interpreter, initiated seriously against the
rendition as wen as the appreciation OF the play
the want oil Shakspeares English lines which have
| always served as an electric spark TO bring the
two sides OF the footlights into harmony
was severely felt both by the actor and
| the audience. But, after ALL great acting
may touch the heart without the lines, and
| last night the varying moods OF OthellO's pas
sion were intelligible though the words In which
| these were conveyed were unmeaning gibberish to
large part OF the audience. 1t Is in the gesture,
| the position OF the body, the expression Of emo
tion In the face that passion finds its chief delinea
tion These things were all that Signor Salvint
could depend upon Tor success, for the old lash
ioned defamation OF the earlier English school
could avail him nothing The long speeches Of
| Otheo were a positive injury to him, and
the play in It's Italian dress would pe uncomfortable
but for the acting, that makes easy to forget that
Othelu made speeches as well as love- But in the
first and second acts, where there IS little oppor-
tunity Tor anything beyond speechmaking, Salvini
showed that he could read the lines, though in
another tongue, in q way to arrest and hold the
attention OF an audience, which saw
in his defamation and elocuton the prom
ise OF better things. 1t was not till the
third act that he showed the wealth Of
his tragic art, and from that time till the end Of
the performance he exhibited great power. Be-
sides the TACT that he confined to the llmita-
| ti0ns OF a language strange to his audience, the
only thing to be regretted the essential weak
ness of his support. The Iago OF Aessandro Sal
| VIM was especially weak-so far, indeed. was 1t
| from being any true conception Of the crafty
| Iago, that II an American actor were to
play it in the same way he would be
laughed from the stage. The part is in many
hands much stronger than even that OF the Moor,
bat there is no comparison between the Othello OF
| the one Salvini and the Iago OF the other. or
the other parts, except the Desdemona OF signora
| Piamonte, 1t is unnecessary to speak. This lady
| Is tragic actress OF reputation in her own
country, but she is not fully up to, the
been accustomed to see and are trained
to expect in any one who undertakes the
| OF her acting in more nattering terms, lar
| few points are concerned; but we cannot accept
her as complete embodiment OF the part. she
lacks the ease and grace which are essential to
| the heroine, and this want Is all the more
contrast to these qualities in salvini We have only
one actor in New York to-day who Is Salvinis rival
s as s1s Of %
on on7 the In oos Of feature M Mr. h.
In the complete embodiment OF idea-the
tthe marx Of indiyiiduality ana creation-he
parison, we are often told Is not criticism, and we
have cited these names not Tor the purpose OF
a general way are salvini's exceIlences. we have
no intention to compare him with any OF our own
embOdes his own ideal OF the part, especially as he
developed that ideal In the three concluding acts
From what we have said it will readily be con-
cluded that the audience listened almost in silence
signor salvni first came upon the stage he was
ssuch as are seldom heard. HIS tall and and ma
turesque and admirable pose, ali preposessed
the audience in his lavor, while the sohdity and
briancy OF his reputation caused his first accents
be listened to with that sort OF anticipation that
| is akin to veneratlon The first point at which he
succeeded in making a deep impression was in his
address to the Council, wherein he narrates by
| what arts and conJurations he won Desdemona's
Here er his passion for the found
tre the speech In It's entirety was ,,a brilliant
OF Brabantl0, with the whispered caution breathed
into Otheo's ear. 1t was at this passage that the
remarkable facial eloquenca OF salvini came into
sion which crossed his features betoSenng the
germ OF the doubt subsequently famed so artlully
for particular remark. In it occur the reappear-
ance OF Othello at the moment when Cassi0's In
Is az .s eigm anu .ng Wmcn , SO
prompt delivery. For the third act was reserved
the opportunity for the genius Of the actor
to make itself ielt with something or its full
force. 1t Is here that Iago begins his work;
II Is here he gives utterance to his first lignt insin
uation, proceeding steathily step by step. feeling
his way, and gradually working mis- victim up to
the last point of endurance. Perhaps the most
emphatic generality which can be written OF sal
WINS Interpretation Of mis- share OF this act Is that
IL is quite unlike that OF anybody else. IT Is
ent view of the sltua alton to any other actor with
wnom America Is acquainted. The characteristic
that is chiefly remarkable in 1t Is the extreme slow
ness with which the suspicion OF Othelo is
awakened, and with which, alter being awakened,
1t is strengthened. 1t is here that the Otheo OF
Savni proves the truth Of the trait he ascribes TO
himself IN his dying moments, mot easily Jealous,
but being wrought perplexed in the ex-
have seen precipitates suspicion and jealousy at
this point. We are not now saying which is the
IS o aa ssns IS original
that 1t is consistent with the rest OF the nterpre
tation; that II has grand strength and repose
that are inexpressibly Affecting, and that
It makes the contrast with Othell0's subsequent
outbreak all the more violent and profound The
whole OF these prolonged scenes between Othello
and Iago were series OF the most vivid and highly
colored pictures. the hues of which, varying be-
tween all the extremes OF richness and tenderness
furnished the most valuable and enduring con-
trasts; and when finally Othello wrought TO the
last point OF rage, lays Iago pr0strate and raises
his foot as though to crush him, the tableaux ac-
CURED demoniac picturesqucness, lurid and
savage intensity, which we do not remember ever
to have seen equaled.
In hastily written notice like this 1t is OF course
impossible to do justice to many little beauties
and nice shades OF Interpretation. AL that we can
hope to do this morning is TO express In general
way what Salvini seems to US to be and what effect
he produced. We have neither time nor space to
follow out in detail the superb effects he pro-
duced in the ensuing acts; to paint the scorn
and contumely OF the look he fixed ON Emilia when
ringng her the money at the end ot the fourth act
OR 10 describe the maQntlcent knoNledpe the actor