Iconoclasts: A Book of Dramatists: Ibsen, Strindberg, Becque, Hauptmann, Sudermann, Hervieu, Gorky, Duse and D'Annunzio, Maeterlinck and Bernard Shaw — John Shaqi
Iconoclasts: A Book of Dramatists: Ibsen, Strindberg, Becque, Hauptmann, Sudermann, Hervieu, Gorky, Duse and D'Annunzio, Maeterlinck and Bernard ShawHuneker, James
History
Iconoclasts: A Book of Dramatists: Ibsen, Strindberg, Becque, Hauptmann, Sudermann, Hervieu, Gorky, Duse and D'Annunzio, Maeterlinck and Bernard Shaw
Huneker, James
Dramatists; European drama -- 19th century -- History and criticism; European drama -- 20th century -- History and criticism
The Warriors' Tomb; Norma, or a Politician's Love,--this latter a
musical tragedy; St. John's Night, need not occupy our time, for the
curious Jaeger and Georg Brandes tell all there is to be told. St.
John's Night, though unpublished, was produced at the Bergen Theatre,
January 2, 1853.
The writer confesses to deep admiration for Fru Inger of Ostraat
(1857) and The Pretenders (1864), both translated by Mr. Archer.
Dealing as they do with historical figures they must be of necessity
interesting to Norwegians. Considered purely as stage plays they
appeal, particularly Lady Inger, a Lady Macbeth in her power for evil.
Nils Lykke, too, is firmly drawn and is fascinating in his ambitions
and debaucheries. There is one big scene in which the pair meet, which
does not soon leave the memory. We seem to see in The Pretenders "the
Great King's thoughts" of Skule, the germ of Julian's character, so
magnificently exposed in Emperor and Galilean. The Pretenders is full
of barbaric colour and the shock of arms. Some episodes recall in
atmosphere those wonderful scenes in Wagner's Götterdämmerung with
their hoarse-throated and bloody-minded thanes.
I was lucky enough to be present at the revival of this epical
composition at Berlin in the Neues Theatre, October, 1904. Previous
to this the Meiningen organization had presented the piece in a
worthy manner, and once at the Schiller Theatre there had been a few
representations. I was amazed at the power and verisimilitude of
Ibsen's characters up to the death scene--rather a theatrical one--of
the wicked Bishop Nikolas. After that the action became, because of
the weak interpretation of Duke Skule by Franz Wüllner, uninteresting.
And then, too, the fatiguing lengths; nearly five hours were consumed
in this noteworthy performance. Director Max Reinhardt was a subtly
wicked ecclesiastic, Friedrich Kanzler the heroic King Hakon. Die
Kronprätendenten, like Wagner's Ring, should be given in sections. At
the Neues Theatre it was splendidly mounted, though it is doubtful if
it ever will be a popular drama in Germany.
The Feast at Solhaug (1857) was a success when it was played at Bergen.
Jaeger says that Olaf Lijekrans, his next but unprinted drama, is
more romantic than its predecessor. St. John's Night is redolent of
folk-song, and the lyric prevails in nearly all the earlier work; but
prose dominates in the three historical dramas, the third being The
Vikings at Helgeland, considered elsewhere.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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