New-York tribune., 1878-05-13
THE DRAMA-MUSIC.
MccTrLoUGHs LAST NIGHTS.

, ord ehensiyc question 20 the excellence OF
n,s influence upon the In which he lives expressed
i; HE ADEQUATE ful6ment Of noble ideals ana IN Ms
,ihol diffusion Of yirfuous emotion. That Mr. McCul
Iouo ia greater IN Troias than IN Richeiisu for eX-
aupe signifies little: ne is enough an actor to reach SUI
preme heights Of merit IN both these parts rs ID all
The parts that undertakes but that mr. AcCalough
Is an actor wbO by his personal quality and by his ART
| makes grandeur potential truth aud herolsm hvins
power is fact that in high degree, the pub
lie good and ought therefore, to be recognized With
suitable emphasis. On Friday nicht, at the Grand
Opera House taking farewell benefit, and acting be-
fore large asscmblage Of the people, he presented
! Lurtus J,mins surna1 ed Britfus in John Howard
| p ,yne's composite tragedy-compilcd from many
sources-of The Fall OF Tarquin;' and his perform
| ance OF this character, seen here for the
| first time, was found to be so singularly
indicative OF his general influence and signIncance'
that thought upon tEs-mUch more than thouSAt upon
detailed examination Of the works irresistibly SuS-
gested such an actor presenting such parts as IT.
giaius Damon, and B,qs, VIII do more to keep alive
in the popular the love Of rueherty and
OF its iuesimabc WORTH. than almost any combination
could Of the wss and strongest rule theage
To estimate the value Of This particular work, however
is also duty Of the moment 1t is not entirely SYM
mcrca and is not evenly great; but 1t is great al
ponts and it has clear intention, stawart grasp,
and iron severity OF finish The studiOus OBJ
server will Of course consider that the author OF
"Brutus" has not made his ideal either vast or
representative and that to try pCrSonatloh Oh
Br,aS by the standard oI the piece Itself Is notas so
oftcn is the case in Shlkesp try it by the stan
dart Of universal human nature. Bts Is exceptional
abnormal, and OF arnhCiaiy mixed cOndOn-albeit
the fibre ofnature rurs through him all An actor accord
ingly. may take large license in his interpretation Ii
Mr GcCulouChs By, the perfect part is the hfth act
which exhibits Che patriots passionate sense
of duty. predOmnating through dreadful struggle,
oyer the tender pronptngs Of tie fathers aneconIte
heayt. Our stage has offered nothing hoblrr
than this image OF moral greatness triumphant
in heartreriug grief; and the lesson is of infinite
value Alongside of this, or little below H. may We set
the splendid assumption Of suppressed fury, in the storm
scene with Tdrqn. coupled with the delivery Of the
crsc Which, IN 5fy. NcCd'lousbs voice nud electrical
manner was tremendous and aWfui. lie haN
three recalls after t4is climax. sth another
apex Of tragic excellence reached In The intense
sorority Of voice and the beautiful rcpose OF tie
admouion speech 20 Tt1s, in the fourth act. M'fc
# this manner would mako Sir. McCuough's EtdHs
work OF higher worth than It Is now. There waS'
in The adde's, to the p1place. IN act third one eNtraor
duary example Of passionate eiOqucuce, specifically
illustrative Of this actors resources OF voice, to-
eclcI with his massive pose and large gestures, ami
his quick sensiby 10 moments of inspiration. After
the third act the IaEedian twice recalled. aud lie
then made brief speech Of gratitude to this pubic ana
of compliment 10 h!s managers. II is in the earlier
! portions OF BiutgS that Mr.. MCCULLOUGH leaves
! le emotions somewhat unsat.Sfed His sllen-
! and his frequent stcntoran delivery Of the text
which Is often tumiI and articiascrye to mar, n no,
10 dissipa.e the illusion of affected lunarJ There Is
more force than intensity The face is happy in express
| ,io,.-Theroas the agony OF long endurance OF
| grief ana the tcitcIcd fcrocity OF moral purpose
mast surely, in nature, make subtle manifestation
through the veil Of morrimeut The first transition from
| The fool 20 the patriot, however. was wrought IN
royal WAY, ana had inspiring cf ct In ac. second
The disguise OF folly bttor, as to face aud manner
! though not as 10 voirc-wIich too significant
! This element OF transparency, however, Is very
difficult of use in acting and its meaning may easily
he frustrated. AS whole Mr. McCG.OuShs Erutfs has
room to grow the GcTiLm, N the bitterness and the
forocy and In the peivadug element OF electrical per
sona!ty bat It has the perfection OF moral dignity and
Of patI0s. In the version OF Brutus that was pre-
/ sented the move swiftly, and this IS
| n comfort for tho style is hyrid, and
| almost all the characters Ecreech Mr. Mccullough
preserves the scene in which TaliI bursts into her
murdered fathers tombone Of those Wild scenes much
urzed by ladies' Of the stage, who ike 10 Jet down
TIE back-hsir Of reckless woe and free their minds
by a yelling tumult Of vitupcrat.on. Mss Mare
Prescott cuipycd this luxury, and rewarded with
two calls before the curtain. Mr.. Harry Lau-don
appeared Igquia, Nr. Joseph Whococh aa hts and
Mss stella Bouifacc TarqUHio.
On saturday afternoon Mr.. Mccullough repeated bis
peerless pcrsouotou OF UyiHiis, ana on saturday oven
iug acting NQcGsM. he brought his engagement - an
end The theatre on tic 81 Dis farewell appear
auce was dcnscly crOWdcd. Dir. Mccullough acts Nae
tih in robust manner md with extraordinary ioIce
blt ms performance is deficient IN |.crdnr,s ana
ia pa!Aos his physical pr,scu of the par u hart
and Amos. fcrccoGs. and it does not fascinac-as il
;ht to doby at least the suggestion Of innate mobility
that has been wrecked gnd ruined by all The powers Of
evil There is something awful and fOrOn IN tie con
dition of hcldrivcn M9cLh. and the
Of him should produce the effect OF Pteousness less
tnan the effect of horror II Is not demon tut fallen
whom Snakes has depicted IN this person
age ana ia order prepare the FOR tine deirUu,
oului-b and tremendou. suficuugB through which MGc
beth goes down 10 destruction, he has sltused the por-
,r!iiuc with the tc"deIcst humanity. Mr.. McCuiouEh
wrought bis effects ~ making M0cbth confront thc
! imaginary spectre Of The butcheIed BGH9HO lie
spoke most OF the text, however, IN ARTIFICIAL and
| strenuous tOues-IvIng the idea OF vast c1grtOE,
and creating the effect Of monotOny ana OF cohEehJal
| stage work. There were many Indications thdt Mf
McCuiOugh's ideal Of Snakcspcarcs conception 0i Ndc-
beh is nigh and inst and night; but lac VI" not Huccccd
in making his meaning clear, and ms embodiment udc
quatc un ne tones down the martial element Hcltht-
cns the humanity, makes apparent certain plih'lc
element OF drifting weakness, ana IcA imagination lHge
| the whole structure 0f his WORK with sad strange
light, indicative Of supernatural influences ana OF the
! fororn and miserable condition OF noble
nature that is haunted by hends. udcOch should
make lis weep rs well sluddcr The character OF LGdY
lfqrbeh was presented on this by MISS Emily
GIanard. Her performance was correct IN mechanical
treatment intelligent scli-possessed and, in "A cOnyen
tall woman, dark In favor aud notable TOT breadth OF
gesture and compass OF voice. Her couAicnance Is not
aud her acting denoted schOolln: much more than per
sJnal insight sympathy OF dramatic perception Mr.
SDes Of IiaodaG There was abundant applause aud Mr.
Mccullough had farewell greeting that he VIII dOubt
less long retain in pleased remembrance
MUSICAL AND DRAMATIC NOTES.
Mr. Mills, the pianist, will sail for Europe,
on the 25th inst.
Mr. Sothern appeared at the Hlaymarket
IN 14fV