Daily globe. [volume] (St. Paul, Minn.) 1878-1884, 1881-03-15
KEENE rs HAMLET.
An Uneven, yet Interesting Rendering
"Richelieu" Tonight.

The public has been led to expect much of
Keene in Hamlet, and the audience of last
evening testified to the curiosity of the st.
Paul theater-goers, if to nothing else. The
tragedy is, perhaps, more familiar to theater-
goers than any other of Shakspeare's creations,
and It's rendition has been attempted by every
actor who has essayed tragic roles, but by few
with success. Keene's Hamlet can be classed
neither as success nor as failure. Hitherto
people have regarded the character as in
tended to depict phase OF insanity
manifesting itself in confirmed melan-
choly. Keenes depicts the young prince in
relieved by spasms of bitter satire, and with
none of that "antic disposition" which he
promises to assume. He displays all the
cunning that inheres in the role, and in action
carries out to the full the horror that his
mothers and his uncle's crime inspired in his
breast. In the first parts of the play he is not
strong, either as an elocutionist or an actor,
slurring some of his lines and running others
together by too hurried articulation. The
soliloquy, ITO be or not to be" was not
artistic. 1t was more of a defamation than a
solitary meditation, and much of the meaning
with which the words are pregnant was
obscured in consequence. His passages with
Polonius and Ophelia were also lacking in that
subtle element that gives to the railery OF the
sentences their barb and sting. In view of
these extremely ordinary readings, the audi
ence was prepared for the bursts of brilliant
acting that succeeded. The play scene Was a
mastery stroke of genius, and the chamber
interview with the queen mother electrical
1t was passage full of fire, thrilling in its
intensity, terrible in the force of invective
hurled upon the devoted head of the hapless,
shining woman. 1t has never been surpassed
by any living actor, and was proof that the
artist is capable of achieving the highest rank
among the opponents of tragedy. The
graveyard scene was also a strong,
well acted passage. The delineation
of the character, while not satisfying as a
whole, was well worth the witnessing. If it
was less uneven some of the imperfections
might be overlooked The fact that Mr.. Keene
displays so much brilliancy IN some passages,
while in others he barely rises above medi-
ocrity, leads to the suspicion that he is not as
thorough a student as master of tragedy
should be, though it is at the same time a
convincing proof that his capabilities have
not been overestimated.
With the exception of the Ophelia Of Miss
Vaders, and the gravedigger of Mr.. Everham--
the latter mere incident of the play-the
support was simply execrable. The droning
monotone of the ghost was exasperating IN
the highest degree, and the mouthings of the
rest of the cast almost insuferable. The
greatest actor who ever lived could not give a
satisfactory performance with such support,
and MIR. Keene will find to his cost that he
cannot do so.
Tonight Mr.. Keene will appear as "Rche-
lieu," at the matinee tomorrow Hamlet
will be repeated, and tomorrow evening the
engagement will close with "The FOOLS En-
randi On Thursday evening the company
will give performance of Orchard I'LL" at
Eau Claire en- route for the East