Daily Republican., 1881-01-13
Ssra Rernhardt.

Sara Bsrnhardt Is not great artist |;
and doubt that by any study or effort
of which she is capable she will ever
become great artist Perhaps, bow
ever, it would be more correct to say
that she is not an artist III the grand
style, and that by the limitations of
her nature, moral and physical, she is
incapable of that style. Her power,
strange to say, is chiefly a personal
power. or intellectual force, or even
of intellectual sub,lety, she suggests
but little; and her moral nature seems
to be as thin and weak as her phys
ique. You are Interested in the feel
ings ami in the experience Of the wo-
man feelings which hardly riss to the
dignity Of emotions; experience which
is hardly beyond the range Of the oc-
currences OF every day life. Her ex-
hibitions Of love, Of joy, of grief, of
feminine petulanoe and feminine per-
plexity, OF delight in life, of interest
in all the little incidents which 60 to
make up social intercourse-these it is
which make the charm Of her acting
and in this department of her art tho
present day has not seen her superior
hardly, believe, her equal. Under
the influence of these feelings her face
becomes transformed, almost trans
figured. ] have never seen on the
stage, or in real life, countenance 30
changed and SO elevated by passing
from lepose into action. The face
which before seems like the faded pic
ture Of some other face, not lovely, be-
comes instinct with intelligence and
charged, surchsrged, with expression.
You then see that her eyes are really
fine; they become large and brilliant,
full Of meaning and of light; and her
mouth has sweet expressiveness
which, when compared with the char
acter Of its lines in repose, is marvel
GUS. No actress that remember is her
equal in the assumption Of look Of
ecstatic joy. Inspired and remoulded
by the expression of this emotion, the
eyes and lips Of that mean and almost
sordid visage, which defies the skill Of
painters and shames the art of photog-
raphy, becomes angelic, worthy Of Ra-
phe's conception Of cherub. Such
radiation Of purity and tenderness,
such an abandonment to simple, con-
fding, all absorbing happiness, Is rare
ly seen portrayed in any form Of art
rarely even in very nature. There is
almost childish 'naivete' in her look.
When, as Adrienne, she throws herself
into Maurice de Saxe's arms, and put
ting her hands upon his shoulders
looks up into his face, it is not the love
of an actress of experience that she
expref1 1893 it is that of pure young
girl in her first love, who in her first
lover sees and worships a demi-god.
When, as Frou Frou, she sits upon her
fathers knee, and gives vent to her
delight at the proposal of marriage
that promises to remove her sister from
the household in which she has usurp-
ed her place, it is less the relief Of a
jealous woman freed from the torment
ing presence of her rival that we see
than the delight Of a nature which
seems incapable OF suspicion in the
anticipation of coming joy. Aud 1t is>
this light, sweet girlishness Of her emo
tional expression which makes Froti
Frou the most charming and complete
ly satisfactory of her impersonations.
She is fully capable of sounding the
little ripping flood of Frou Frou's thin
and feeble but captivating nature,
which, "like shallow streams, run
dimpling all the way" When she
gets into deeper waters her plummet
is too short. R. c. White.