Juniata sentinel and Republican. [volume] (Mifflintown, Juniata County, Pa.) 1873-1955, 1882-12-13
Her Maiesty's Players.

fOOtwev rs a plav-biil- Apprentices, foreign
looking merchants with -hronzed faces.
a dandy staining his lsce ruff IS with snuff
from a silver box. and broad shouldered
cOuutryman, evidently up for law-terIn,
are coming Its rough large letters II we
look over the shoulders OF one Of the ap-
prentices We can read it. There IS now be-
ing performed, 1t states. ''The most excel
lent historic of the Merchant OF Venice"
with the extreme crueltie of ShyLOcEe the
JelC toward the ssyd merchant. in cutting
a Just pound of his flesh, ana obtaining OF
Portia by the chOyse Of three caskets, IS
it hath diverse tlmss been acted by the
Lord Chamberlain, his servants. Written
by William Shakespeare There is no
cast OF the performers. We enter IN good
time for the play This is the wooden o
mentioned by the bard himself in his Pro-
logue to .'Heury v" The PIT IS already
fairly filed and worth studying. LeatherD-
belted apprentices abound some with per-
mission os their masters, others, Ia judge
from their dissipated looks, evidently with
out. Some are grouped in busy gossip on
the earthen floor, others are plsying at
cards, whilst eating, smoking ard chafiing
and hustling are going on all around There
IS a good deal OF pushing toward the front
These are the .'yOuths that thunder al the
playhouse and fight for bitten apples" re-
ferred to in "Henry VIII" 4 few women,
wearing masks, are visible here, but ihev
rise no higher than the wives OF citizens,
and some of them sink much lower. In
the boxes, whose fronts are bung with
painted clothes, are the more fashionable
uersons. curled and perfumed, looking
down on the tumUlt below with great curl
osity. In a high box is the band, playing
an overture. in response to trumpet call,
but not much regarded. The instruments
apparently are shawms, vIoiIns, sSckouts,
and dulcImers. The worsied stage curtain
is down. and we can see that it opens down
the centre, and that each part draws back
from behind. Whilst the grcundhngs are
pointing out the nOjables in the boXes-a
well known cOurtler, a new embassdqr,
great sea captain the trumpet sounds
AGAIN, and the curtain is dra vn aside.
We are introduced to a street IN Venice,
Is appear by label IN antique type. Had
there been prologue, it would have been
spokea by an actO- IN long black cloak,
and had il I.een "Hamlet" or skiing
Lear" d" the stage itself is rather broad than
deep. 1t iseovered with green rushes- a
curtain at the sack hides 4 raised balcony.
in which are unemployed actors, and pos
s;bly Shakespeare himself. The actors
speaking wear common clothes, suitable
TO their rank in England Before BdSSGniO
enters. several dandies, in trunk hose and
a a. 1f.x-- hats
have louuged on 10 the stage, with boy at
tendanis bringing their stools. Their TO-
setted shoes are plainly visible ss they
cross their eyebrows the better - study
the DIT. One OF them, dreadfullY bored.
dlscards his stool. and hes ali bis length
on the rrishes. Another takes out his pipe
and his tobacco, and begins 10 smoke
through his nose, snd to blow the blue
eloud upward, in rng after ring, 10 show
that he has learned to''take tooacco from
the very best professors.
The plsy proceeds POrtiG and Aer-
| issa are played by boys, rs are all
women's parts Presently Shyt0ck enters
In his Jewish gaberdine, such as can be
seen any day III the Jewerle. or in Lom-
bard street. and there is fierce claDptns IN
the Dit. Surely, 1t IS Richard BurDage
himself. The dandies on their stools
seems momeutar,ly Interested. One taxes
trem his pocket his table~5Ook, made OF
small pl,1ces of slate, bound together lu
duodeclmO, such as Autolycus sold IN "A
| Winters Tale" and such as SIR Nathaniel
drew out to write down the mGst ''siagu-
lar Sud choice epithet' used by EolOternes,
I !, 1 > IN fsnzerlllinrr IL
| AdrianO de Armada as being too picked.
! too spruce, too affected. too odd, as II
were. TO pe,egrinate.' We are unable to
see what he IS writing down, whether
comments on the play. or passages fol-
conversation at -. Paul's or over his oTdi-
nary. Probably his friends will hear hin
saving tonight, Slow Ike fawning
publican he looks, The devil Can cite
Scripture for his purpose, y OF 'ln religion
what damned error. but sOEe sober brow
will bless II. and approve L aIth text.
C,ucernig the dandIes turned critics. Ber
Johnson once wrote: ''Let them Know tbs
author deiies them and their W;ltlng
tables" Many of the pithy qnotaticp:
still In common use were first introduced
by the writing-table gentry, who mad'
them classic before the plays in which thel
were contained were printed for publl
reaflng.
Amidst whistliug from the select sitter
on the stools, and much yeliiug from III
Dit at ShytOck, and good deal oI merrl
imitation when BasSanIo sings. IN the cas-
ket scene, the play goes on. The spraw
ling gentleman. who IS evidently III at ease
L TO
nothing for POrtla and her domestic al
rangements, and so he crosses the stage a
the back. and Joining another exquisite Ol
the opposite side, they fall to cards, 1
nause for a few minutes while jester ap
2 nears. between the third and fourth acts
: to dance a iig and sing rude snatch IA
a of what are now called ''topIcal illusions.
The trial scenes comes on, aud down
: he cards into the rushes- The pit Is ST.
d as grave All eyes are on the stage !
2 bystander Whispers in our ear, "Fh
q Duke is played by the author, rlst
D noble looking fellow. We recognize hlI
: at once. lie delivers himself with e1fec
( in a soft but round mellow voice One
e two Underwriters are busy with their SLATE
, the scratching of their pencils disiInctl
: audible In the pauses OF the dialogue III
: performance at length comes TO an eat
i The PLAYERS come forward to the front
# the stage. Tney kneel together and Sd
It IN concert, .'God save the Qleen," as Il
r Epllogue save himself, in the second pa
: OF s.Henry w." and as 1t used to run
n the end OF our own play-Dills- The Gu
is talns cross together. and amidst hootin
# iostllng and chaif the crowd disperse
Presently Shakespeare and his companiol
l. will 90 to the Falcon or cross LondI
; Bridge TOR night at Mermaid, pointed
IS as they pass, and individually as we
# known as rotunG, johnson and reveren
e looking Chapman. Such with small Val
+ ations, was the play acting of the days
d Elizabeth and james.
y Elizabeth never visited any OF the pu
is lie theatres. Very few respectable WON
> ever did, or there would have been L
g coarseness IN the plays of the time WIN
v NAV be said to have been written sole
II for men. But she frequently had Sha
a espeare's pieces played before Eer- D
n was a great adnIrer Of the two parts
II .sHenry W. "OthellO" was Played