New-York tribune., 1879-05-05
THE LONDON STAGE.
Mr. IRVING IN THE LADY OF LYONs.s


FROM THE REGULAR CORRESPONDENT OF THE TRiBuNtJ
LONDON, April 1S.-Mr. Irving brought out The
Lady of Lyons last night at the Lyceum Theatre.
There was the usual frst-night audIence-all the
newspaper critics a large number of MIR. lryingS
admirers in various classes of lie society and Bo-
hemia touching each others elbows, an actor here
and there an artist two, fine ladies who admire
Mr. Irving other fine ladies who admire his acting,
some who admire both, not few men OF letters ana
men of laws The Daily Telegraph, with box TO itself
quite independent of its critic who modestly occu-
pied modest stall, a popular and cultivated bar
onet with his popular and cultivated wife, great
oculist with his wife, great throat doctor with hls
wife. and the Baroness Burdett-Coutts with her
usual train. including her Jngo Commls-
sioner TO Turkey. On the whole. brilliant house
enOugh-albeit somewhat different in composition
from that which assembled TO see the first perior-
nance of Hamlet" Mr.. Irving's friends have
wondered why he should choose 10 put the Lady
of Lyons" on the stage play which belongs TO
the most artificial class of melodramas; which IS
stlted unnatural. impossible, and, to the present
generation, uninteresting They have been told
that it was in order to afford Miss Ellen Terry an
opportunity of acting Pauline. Mr.. Irving is quite
capable of such an act of devotion. His politeness
in the present instance is chvalrous. 1t amounts
those interests of dramatic art which we have al
,gays supposed it TO be his mission TO foster. The
play not the sort of play expects to see per-
..rmed at the Lyceum. Popular, no doubt. 1T ever
was bat the lover of the drama, even though
friend of Sir Irving may be permitted TO hope that
IL is popular no longer. In the way of accessories
Mr. Irving has done all that could be done forlt III
is shovily dressed and mounted. It's su5ordi-
nate parts are acted as well as they
are usually acted; better. if you like
since Mr.. Irving has himself had the
drilling of his assistants But the play is beyond
the reach of such help as that it reduces good
actors to its bad level. Mr. Forester, who has
shown signs of genuine ability in other parts, can
make nothing of BeausoGRt beyond the conventional
stage villain; well-attred, wicked and wooden.
Mr. Lacv who desires us to state that he is spe-
clally engaged" is equally correct in costume and
equally unhuman. He Is irreproachable and aOso-
lutoly uninterestiug. DeSchappelleSis only dummy
at best; Madame Descidppe,les an animated mil
liners block and the rest of the minor characters
are still more remote from actual life. 1t really does
not matter whether such parts are well acted or Ill
acted They should not be acted at ALL
The honors of the evening, such as they were
belong to Miss Ellen Terry. l am not. sure
whether, in saying this, l express my
own opinion, OF only yield weak compliance
TO the opinions of those about me. Miss Ellen
Terry is commonly reported the best actress now on
the London stage. Scores OF people 90 about Lon
don asserting that she Is r1stty that she is graceful
that she has great KIN wledge of her art that she
possesses the secret ~ pathos; that her attitudes
are models for the painter and that her elocuton is
of highly superior kind. | have not the moral
courage to express any strong dissent from an opln-
ion so general shared asit is by many people whose
opinion | know TO be worth much more than NINE
/ content myself with confesSing my inability to 90
quite so far. to admire quite 80 unreservedly, to
praise quite so eagerly as do the Terry party; if
may venture to call them the Terry party, Miss
Ellen Terry seems to be an actress of much intelli-
pence. IT is my misfortune that l am never moved
by her most pathetic tones that l can see little
variety in her performance nor ever forget the
Pauline Oliria, OphtHa, OF whatever heroine 1t be,
ere one and all Miss Ellen Terry. She langushed
last night in Pauline as she Iangushed
the last time / saw her in Ophelid. She
dresses with care and often with taste. In her
uuieter moments her acting is marked by real
refinement seldom by power. There are people
who speak of her and of Sarah Bernhardt In the
same sentence, which proves once more how deep
the gulf is between dramatic standards in England
and dramatic standards in France For Miss
Terrys Pauline of course, the same allowance is TO
be made as for all the other characters in tins play
She is called upon to impersonate creature possess
ing few traits in common with the women of actual
life.
Still more strongly may the same thing be pleaded
in Mr. Irving's behalf Claude NelpOtte is not a
man. nor a manikin; he is a manonctte, in whose
mouth Lord Lytton has put some Of the silhest
speeches ever written. He has stripped him of
every engaging quality. By turns peasant, prince,
md peasant again, he is devoid of the simple
virtues belonging to the one, and a rank imposter
when he struts in the feathers of the other.
Such merits as are imputed to hlm he could
not possibly have possessed Peasant, he never
oould have learned the elaborate elegance of man
ner and the infinite variety of conventional accom-
pishment which in those days still more than now
went to the making of man of high rank Native
wit wou I'd more have carried HIM safely through
the intrcacIes of fashionable talk, than native
force of arm could have made him the accomplished
sworlsman who dlsarms Danasin couple of passes.
Mssonerading as a Prince, he must have stumbled
on a dozen unknown shibboleths in the first hour
of social intercourse Peasant again. he is a peas
ant of the footlights only one of the motley band
which are met with in opera chOruses but nowhere
else IN the world. What was Mr.. Irving TO make
of such a hermaphrOdite as this.
Mr. Irving, moreover, was plainly i'll. Nervous
ness of manner he is liable TO show at any time; but
last nj CHI it reached point which made everybody
fear catastrophe. The fatigues of management,
the anxiety and responsibility incident 10 the pro-
duction OF a new piece; the consciousness that he
was attempting part unsuited to him-these. and
perhaps other causes of which the publ, may know
nothing had made too great demand on his
strength. Ihave said often enough that Mr.. Irving
appears to me a finished comedian; and young
lovers part might not seem unsuited to him. But
- in, of fla
word a comedy; IT Is purely sensational drama,
and Claude Neinotte is in n ridiculous hutter
of spirits from beginning to end; never nat
ural: forever the prey to emotions which
might possibly be felt. but could not possibly be
,,rn.snd The siinafions constructed for him are