The San Francisco call., 1899-12-04
ADA REHAN AS KATHARINA.

what vulgar farce It has for the most
part subsequently remained.
Garrick is not to be wholly blamed Tor
this. The play a comedy is perhaps
the least interesting that Shakespeare
wrote. The character of Katharine Is
not attractive either TO players or TO spec
tators at deast to the players and the
spectators of to-day; and the character
OF Petruchio is less so. Nor are the minor
characters. though for the most part they
are we'll delineated. sufficiently important
in the dramatic action OF the play to be
interesting either.
1t was the late Mr.. Augustin Daily who
resuscitated Shakespeare's play of The
Tanning of the Shrew' and gave IL a
distinction and honor II never knew be-
fore-in fact the only real distinction and
honor II ever knew. This he did In 1857.
He presented THE Tanning of the ShreH"
almost as Shakespeare wrote it. includ-
ing even the Induction" only that he
shortened the play somewhat and ANAL
gamated some OF the scenes in which Pet
ruchio and Katharine appeared together
in order TO make them more effective.
In addition, he magnihcently staged the
play; for example. making the banquet
scene at the end an affair of almost regal
splendor furthermore, he gave to Il
capital cast. Ada Rehan was the Katha-
rina, John Drew the Petruchio and VIII
liam Gilbert the Christopher Sly. As
result the glamour of great name, of a
Shakespearean revival In short, together
with intrinsic merit in every department
OF the production itself. won for his effort
the brilliant honor of both an esthetic
and a pecuniary success.
OF Ada Rehan's Katharine in this re-
vival there is but one opinion. II was in
every way a complete realization Of
Shakespeare's conception. IL at once
took its place in the glorious company OF
the worlds ideal Shakespearean heroines,
along with Adelaide Nelson's Juliet, FL
len Terry's Ophelia and Helen FaucIts
Rosalind.
1t is doubtful, however, IL ever there
will be another manager to try throws
with fortune in ''The Tanning of the
Shrew" as Mr.. Daily did. and therefore
still more doubtful II ever there VIII be
another Katharine equal to Miss Rehan's
Katharine.
In England there have been two at
tempts to reproduce Shakespeare's Tam
ing OF the Shrew." One OF these was in
1S46-47 when under the direction OF the
dramatic critic and author. j r. Plan
che. the play was brought out as nearly
as possible like what it would have been
in Shakespeare's time. There was no
stage scenery and the changes OF scene
in the play were indicated by the hang
ing up Of placards, the placards having
the names of the scenes written upOn
them. In this reproduction Mrs Nisbett
(then Lady Booth) was the Katharine. and
with her beauty, her vivacity and her
exhilarating humor a very effective Kstn-
arina she was. 1t is said that her eyes
were as bewitching and her laugh as
mirth-provoking at Mrs. Jordan's.
The other English production OF The
Tanning of the Shrew'' was that made by
that conscientious laborer in the Shakes
perean vineyard. Samuel Phelps OF Sad
ler's Wells In 1856 Mr.. Phelps presented
the play in its original form as one OF
his series Cthe twenty-ninth in the series
we believe) OF great Shakesrearean re-
vivals. But, unlike Planche, Mr.. Phelps
produced the play as Mr.. DAILY afterward
did I'm New York. with a liberal equip
ment of scenery and appropriate cog
tunes. The remarkable feature in this re-
production was the part taken I'm II by
the great Shakespearean actor and
scholar himself. Instead OF taking the
part of Petruchio, which would natural
ly have been his, for he had frequently
PLAYED IL in Garrick's Katharine and
Petruchio." he took the much humber
part of Christopher Sly, and this sImply
for the purpose Of presenting to his pat
rons what he conceived to be the true
Shakespearean conception OF this very
amusing but minor part. The admirers
of Shakespeare owe a great debt of graf
itude TO Samuel Phelps. Without doubt
he did more toward extending a true
knowledge of Shakespeare throughout the
play-going world than any other human
being.
Adaptations of THE Shrew" have been
very popular in Germany from the seven
teenth century. In 1884, out Of 7O6 per-