The Knickerbocker, Vol. 10, No. 6, December 1837Various
History
The Knickerbocker, Vol. 10, No. 6, December 1837
Various
Periodicals
ELLEN TREE.--The finest comedies in the language, presented to us, in
their principal characters, through the acting of Miss ELLEN TREE,
have proved, during the last engagement of this lady, that a true
taste for the legitimate drama yet exists in full force in America,
however it may have degenerated on the other side of the water.
'Rosalind,' 'Beatrice,' 'Lady Teazle,' 'Viola,' as well as 'Ion,'
'Jane Shore,' 'Clarisse,' in the _Barrack-Room_, 'Christine,' and
a multitude of other characters, as varied in their kind as these,
have offered a rich intellectual treat to all who can appreciate the
chaste, ungarnished beauties of the drama. It would be superfluous
to speak of Miss Tree's merit in these characters. To us, at least,
she has become identified with them all; and in speaking of her
performances, we must say that the task can only be a repetition of
that even strain of unadulterated praise, which, justly awarded,
belongs only to perfection. We look in vain for some fault, some
discrepancy, some point which might be improved upon. All is so near
the _beau ideal_ of her art, that we must, in omitting all censure,
either confess ourselves wanting in judgment, or at once acknowledge
Miss Ellen Tree a being more perfect on the stage, than any we know
or can conceive of, off of it. Perhaps the greatest of her many
merits is the remarkable purity of her utterance, and the true sound
and meaning with which she clothes the language of the author. In the
classic phrases of 'Ion,' this beauty is prominent; the choice words
which form the finished sentences of this gem of English literature,
are sounded full in every letter. Vowels and consonants receive
their measured justice, and every line is meted out with its just
cadence, imparting to our much-abused English a quality as free from
blemish as it is capable of sustaining. In common or less classical
compositions, the words are endued with a strength and beauty, which
are borrowed from her perfection of utterance. There is a roundness
and a rich purity in her pronunciation, which gives a finish and
fullness to the sound, that is really musical. She is a worthy
mistress of the Queen's English.
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