Page images
PDF
EPUB

the persuasive eloquence of dress; when beaux and belles, enamoured of themselves in one another's follies, fluttered like gilded butterflies in giddy mazes through the walks of St. James's Park! The perfection of this gala out-of-door comedy is in Etherege, the gay Sir George! Then comes Wycherley, and then Congreve, who hands them into the drawing-room.—Congreve is supposed to have been the inventor of the epigrammatic, clenched style of comic dialogue; but there is a great deal of this, both in Wycherley and Etherege, with more of a jaunty tone of flippant gaiety in the latter, and more incident, character, and situation, in the former. The Country Girl holds unimpaired possession of the stage to this day, by its wit, vivacity, nature, and ingenuity. Nothing can be worse acted, and yet it goes down, for it supplies the imagination with all that the actors

want.

Mr. Bartley had some merit as Moody, Mr. Fawcett none. Barrymore, at Covent Garden, played Harcourt well. We have seen him in better company, and he reminded us of it. He was much of the gentleman, and as much at home on the stage (from long practice) as if he had been in his own apartments. As to the two Miss Peggys, we hardly know how to settle their pretensions. If Mrs. Mardyn overacts her part to that degree that she seems only to want a skipping-rope to make it complete, Mrs. Alsop is so stiff and queer that she seems to have only just escaped from a back-board and steel monitor. If Mrs. Alsop has the clearest voice, Mrs. Mardyn has the brightest eyes. Mrs. Alsop has most art, Mrs. Mardyn has most nature. If Mrs. Mardyn is too profuse of natural graces, too young and buoyant and exuberant in all her movements, the same fault cannot be found with Mrs. Alsop, whose smiles give no pleasure, and whose frowns give unmingled pain. Mrs. Alsop's Peggy is a clever recitation of the character, without being the thing; and Mrs. Mardyn's is a very full development of her own person, which is the thing itself. Mrs. Alsop is the best actress, though not worth a pin, and Mrs. Mardyn is the most desirable woman which is always worth something. We may apply to these two ladies what Suckling said of one of his mistresses:

"I take her body, you her mind—
Which has the better bargain?"

[blocks in formation]

142; "Prince Ferdinand," 90;
"Pylades," 253.

"Abel Drugger" (in The Tobac-
conist), Kean, 78-80.

Abington, Mrs. Frances (1737-1815),
xvi.

Accusation; or, The Family of

Anglade, by J. H. Payne; at
Drury-Lane, 162-4.

Actor, a respectable, 91; genius of,
perishes with him, 152.
Actors, extravagance of, 184; re-
garded with affection, 82.
Adelaide; or, The Emigrants, by
R. L. Sheil; at Covent Garden,
207-II.

Agreeable Surprise, The, by J.

O'Keeffe; at Haymarket, 226-7.
Alchemist, The, by Ben Jonson, 78-
80.

[blocks in formation]
[ocr errors]

Andromaque, by Racine, 252.
Angrisani, Signor, as "Il Commen-
datore," 308; 'Masetto," 308,
317.
Anstey's New Bath Guide, 335.
Antony and Cleopatra, acting ver-
sion of, 20; criticized, 22; at
Covent Garden, 20-3.

Apostate, The, by R. L. Sheil; at
Covent Garden, 315.

Apprentice, The, by Arthur Murphy,

2.

Arnold, S. J., as a poet, 104.
Artaxerxes, by Dr. Arne; at Covent
Garden, 23-4, III-2, 243; Eng-
lish Opera, 227-9.

As You Like It; at Covent Garden,
117-9, 255-7.

Atkins, William, 155.

Aurora; or, The Flight of Zephyr,
at Covent Garden, 290.

[ocr errors]

66

Baker, as Sidney," 225.
Bannister, John (1760-1836); his
farewell, 80-3; as Autolycus,"
82 and n.; "Bowkit," 82 and n.;
"Dick," 2, 81 n.; "Echo," 81;
"Lenitive," 81 n., 82; 66 'Scrub,"
82 and n.; "Sylvester Dagger-
wood," 223; "the Copper Cap-
tain," 89; "Vapour," 81 n.,
"Walter," 81 and n.
Barbarossa, by John Brown; at
Drury Lane, 319.

82;

[blocks in formation]

Barrymore, William (d. 1845), as
66 Harcourt," 342.
Bartley, George (1782-1858), xxi,
180, 219, 247; as "Ben," 161;
"Gen. Torrington," 129; "Léon
de Valency," 163; "Moody,"

342; "the Copper Captain," 88;
in Old Customs, 238.
Bartley, Mrs. (Sarah Smith, 1783-
1850), her style of oratory, 73,
195; as "Arpasia," 339;
"Queen
(in Richard II), 73;
'Tragic Muse," 197. See also
Smith, Miss Sarah.

66

Beaux' Stratagem, The, by Far-
quhar, 82 and n.

Becher, Lady. See O'Neill, Eliza.
Beehive, The, by J. G. Millingen;

at English Opera, 219.
Beggar's Bush, The, by J. Fletcher,
137.

Beggar's Opera, The, by Gay; at
Covent Garden, 25-8, 128; Drury
Lane, 122-4, 262-3; English
Opera, 219, 232-3.

Begri, Signor, as "Guglielmo," 237.
Belfield, Mrs. (Mary Ann Burnell,

1783-1819), as "Judith," 100.
Bengough, Henry (d. 1825); as
"Baron Wildenhaim," 253-4;
"Duke of Gloster" (in Jane

Shore), 283-4; "Lieutenant Gov-
ernor," 288.

Bertram, by C. R. Maturin; at
Drury Lane, 202-7, 283, 311.
Bibby, début of, 194; as "Sir Per-

tinax," 194, 225, 281.
Blacksmith of Antwerp, The, by J.
O'Keeffe; at Drury Lane, 257-8.
Blanchard, William (1769-1835);
as "Old Crabtree," 116; "Old
Project," 134.

Bland, Mrs. (Maria Theresa Ro-
manzini, 1769-1838); as "Ariel,”
93 and n.

Boarding House, The, by S. Beaz-
ley, Jun.; at Lyceum, 97.
Bobinet the Bandit, by
Covent Garden, 136.

-

Bell; at

Booth, Junius Brutus (1796-1852),
début of, 291 and n.; and the
Covent Garden managers, 295;
Covent Garden v. Drury Lane,
296-8; as" Iago," 293-5; "Rich-
ard III," 291-2, 296; "Rinaldo,"
312.

Booth, Miss Sarah (1793-1867); as
"Dorinda," 90;
66 'Francis du
Bart," 121.
Boyce, Miss S., as "Lady Anne"
(in Richard III), 8, 10.
Boydell, Alderman John, 11.
Boyle, Miss Henrietta Cecil (d.
1863); début, 250; as
"Desde-
mona," 264; "Rosalind,” 255-6;
Violante," 250.

66

Braham, John (1772 [?]-1856); as a
singer, 74-6, 81, 190-1, 334; as
"Ferrando,” 237.

Bristow, Miss C., 105.

Bristow, Miss Louisa Maria, as
"Miranda," 90.

Brogue, Irish and Scotch contrasted,

95.

[merged small][merged small][merged small][merged small][merged small][merged small][merged small][merged small][merged small][ocr errors][merged small][merged small][merged small][merged small][merged small][merged small][merged small][merged small][merged small][merged small][merged small][merged small]
[merged small][merged small][merged small][merged small][merged small][merged small][merged small][ocr errors][merged small][merged small][merged small][merged small][merged small][merged small][merged small][merged small][merged small]

Double Gallant, The, by Cibber, at

Drury Lane, 299-303.
Douglas, by J. Home, 3.

Dowton, William (1764-1851), as
"Dr.
Cantwell," 107-9;

66

66

66

"Gripe," 148; "Heartly," 132;
"Lockitt," 124; 'Major Stur-
geon," 109, 223-4; "Polonius,"
17; "Probe," 314; Shylock,"
114; "Sir Sampson Legend,”
160; "Sir Solomon Sadlife,"
303.
Drouet, M., 191-2, and n.
Duke of Milan, The, by Massinger,
at Drury Lane, 177-80.
Duruset, John (1791-1842), as "Ar-
taxerxes," 112; Cymon," 132;
"Dashall," 245; "Don Juan,'
316-7; "the Spirit" (in Comus),
84.

"

66

[ocr errors]

"Edmund (in King Lear), com-
pared with "Iago,” 58-9, 68.
Edwards, I. L., début of, 110; as

"Richard III," 110, 192.

Edwin, John, the younger (1768-
1805), 82 and n., 153.
Egerton, Mrs. (Sarah Fisher, 1782-
1847), as "Meg Merrilies," 182;
"Ravina," 182.

[blocks in formation]
« PreviousContinue »