The times., 1900-12-27
THE FRENCH IDEA oF HAMLET.
4 WondrOus Performance by Mime.
Sarah Bernhardt.
From the Now YORK Sum

Grom the New York SUM-
The genius and fame of Sarah Bern
| hardt have enabled her to make an ar
! tistic achievement with an exploit of
| celebrity. a New York audience saw last
| night what she had done before in Paris
and London as a Shakespearean trage-
dian to keep herself in focus of theat-
rical attention. That was to enact Ham
let" Curiosity could not have failed to
gather at the Garden Theatre an appre-
cietive audience. There was French pride
in a compatriot and American indiscrimi-
nate acclaim OF her to account for much
of the enthusiasm, but the more JUDICIAL
applause was positive, too. though far
less abundant Plainly, those who be-
slowed critical thought on the perform
ance admired it with reservations.
The entertainment was satisfactory in
most particulars. As a show of a woman
famous in fact persc1ating a man famous
in fiction il was no doubt regarded by most
of the purchasers as giving full moneys
worth. She had been on view as male in
"L'Aiglon," but there she had represented
with some illusion delicate boy, while
here she made no close approach to man
hood in looks or voice. At first sight she
suggested d burlesquer fitted out to make
merry with Shakespeare not grotesquely.
but in eomely facetiousness. Hundreds Of
glasses were instantly raised in scrutiny.
Through the cruel lenses her face was seen
to be lined with the full record OF It's years.
but her figure in its cloak and stockings
might have been no older than Hamlet's.
and its outlines were not distinctly those
common to her sex. 1t was when she
spoke or moved that her lack Of mannish-
ness destroyed her disguise utterly. and
left her to be regarded by most OF the
spectators as a personal rather than q
professional exhibit. But just as her great
ness as an actress had many times won
back the respect which her smallness in
other dignity had lost. so in this exploit
with Hamlet her skill atoned almost II
not quite ror her impertinence. After for
giving her fer taking up the part at ALL it
was easy enough to appreciate what she did
with it, So there was an unwilling minor
ity which rather slowly yet surely went
over to the majority and enjoyed the in
terpretaticn-
Esteemed at its best. however. this
Hamlet was a travesty OF the character
that Shakespeare had written. In all the
disputes over the princes state of mind
or heart and his motives for strange be-
havior, it remained for Miss Bernhardt
to conceive him as other than a melan-
choly Dane. She did not make him as
sune an antic disposition. but depicted
him as naturally possessing it. He was
high-spirited and mischievous. almost ma
licious, and the outward sadness of his
dutiful mourning did not smother his in
side jocuIarity. He cracked the heads OF
Rosencrans and Guildenstern together.
caught an imaginary fly on Polonius' nose,
belied his own assertion that all his Joy
of life had turned to grief and conveyed
no idea that the exuberances Of conduct
we're feigned. But when the play in its
progress arrived at momentous scenes be
became duly serious. impassioned. and
At no time did he present
any metaphysical qualities. He was never
more than intellectual in his range from
comedy to melcdrama without reaching
tragedy in the higher sense of that term
But he was vivid. intense. theatric- He
in elocutIon tco formal in the
Bernhardt method to be wholly acceptable
in lieu of Booths eloquence. IN short.
here was a player of the Latin race en-
deavoriuE to interpret q character created
IN the Anglo-German spirit.
The translation of Hamlet used was
the bald literal and uninspired work OF
Eugene Morand and Marcel Sehwob. 1t
held up some passages to something like
their original quality and let others drop
10 commonplace. There was no Ecte-
worthy departure in form from the Ing
lish abridgrnent familiar to our stage.
But Miss Bernhardt did not adhere to our
usages very closely in the aetion- her
symbols we're mostly expressive. however.
enough to supeTsede those which many
generations of English actors have put
into the role. 1t was by the measure
ment of comparison that. with all her
skill. she seemed TO lose some OF her own
stature Of geE;:s in this inappropriate
clever as IL was. II was not
of a height with Mr.. Mounet-Suliy's
poetic and romantic performance here IN
a better French version few years ago.
She did not equal him in getting into thu
heart and brain of 1t. She was still
further inferior to our own latest Ham
let" Mr.. Sothern, in that respect. II It
is unfair to contrast woman with men
in the part, the excuse is that she has
put herself forward injudiciously. A trao
regard for her best fame should have re-
strained her. But she offers diversion
that is salable. and she doubtless feels
hat her loss is also her fully compensa-
tory gain.