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oFt&odem E ^ lKS ^ rather chalky in its colour , but true to texture . It isi L ^ f tou saSthe very hgate of the dead put before you * bringing you close ftthS diJpfcy ^ life joined with ghastly d < B ^ wi hkve ^ frio& £ * QM ^ £% SMB for ascribing to him a picture by another artistof the saminame : The inadvertence was not of very serious moment ; but it was an inadvertence , and ought to be corrected . ]
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RISTORI AS MEDEA . , The world has been to see " The Ristori : " and the world has come away in raptures . The critics have tortured their ingenuity in discovering points to admire , and . have exhausted their artistic vocabulary in attempting to express their admiration . First impressions are proverbially dangerous , and , therefore , we determined to see her more than once , in order that we might be able to form a deliberate judgments If , on the one hand , this remarkable person owes something at least to the unworthy desire of depreciating the great Rachel , she has on the other liand , herself suffered detraction at the hands of those who have displayed a foolish jealousy of the fame of her French rival . It is , we think impossible to doubt that Ristori is a woman of genius ; and that whether superior or inferior to Rachel , the lovers of dramatic art ought thankfully to welcome so eminent an artist . The Medea by M . Legocve , which she selected for her debut , has many defects . It has no plot ; it exhibits little skill in construction ; it is obviously written for the purpose of exhibiting the powers of a particular actress ; it is a series of situations , each of which of hehistrionic faculties
is intended tfrafford -theaettesS Scbpfc for thei display r . Nevertheless , the ; play ris well written , and has been so admirably translated by My Montanelli that the Italian version is , to our mind , superior to the French original . The cjfitjca may abuse the play as they please , but it is idle to pretend th ' at a work which : affords such scope for dramatic power can be entirely without merit . Our own- opinion is , that unless it contain some absurd inconsistenc ies , Mv I * EGOtrv £ has achieved a considerable success in the performance of an almost hopeless task—the construction , of a driania capable of exhibiting in one evening the varied emotions which sway a fiercely passionate woman ' s soul . It would be tedious to analyse this tragedy scene by scene . But Medea ' s character , as drawn by M . LjEGOUve , appears to have been so strangely misunderstood , that it maybe well to explain ourselves a little . Medea is no mere monster of iniquity . Before she beheld Jason , she lived a life of innocent happiness . JProixrthe hour she beheW him she had but pne thought—Jasox . The power of "Lovtf filled her soul . It did not indeetf destroy her other faculties , but it overshadowed them . She feels herself under the domination of an inexorable power—the God of Love . To some , indeed , this god is the happy child of
heaven— incoronato Gtiovine nume dal sorriso eterno ; but to Med"ea— J , ,, - ¦• - ¦'• ' di nere Eumenidi e messaggio E di lividi serpi s' inghirlanda . Hence the seeming contradictions of the Medea of Legotjve . Sometimes she is the incarnation of all the noblest feelings of woman ' s nature , but again the terrible god takes possession of her soul , and the voice of nature is suddenly extinguished . In this Medea we behold a woman of strong passions , in whom , however , the passion of love is developed to madness . Such a 3 it seems to us is the key to the anomalies of this apparently inexplicable character . artist must obviouslh passion at
-Jn such a drama the successful y ave every command . Medea is a queen—she is a mother—she is afflicted—she has suffered wrongs ; though abandoned by her husband she yet seeks him through the world—for that husband ' s love she has perpetrated crimes the most atrocious ; she is possessed by the power of Love—chained to his chariot-wheels ; she is brought face to face with her rival—she is consumed by jealousy—she dotes on her children to distraction—she is left alone in the world to struggle with inexorable Fate . There is , indeed , something awful about her . The very fashion of her countenance , stamped with the mysteries of her life , inspires terror in all spectators . She is haunted by her guilt—the smell of blood is upon her . As she crosses the threshold of the temple she hears a voice in her ear" Qui si respira Odor di sangue" — Her very children shrink from her embrace .
In such a character there is full scope for dramatic genius . Ira the attempt to portray this character , Ristori ventured upon an arduous task , but in that task we think she has Succeeded . Clad after tho old Etruscan fashion , in the ample folds of an orange-coloured robe , with a green scarf—her luxuriant black hair collected behind , whilst the long curls are left to fall about her cheeks—her fine forehead bound with a scarlet band , and admirably setting off those strongly marked but finely chiselled features—Uistokt , the moment she steps upon the stage , at once fixes attention . That impressive but at times stooping figurethat sallow complexion—dark eye—long aquiline nose—a mouth full of change-V « J *« u U& *«* vr »» Wll J » ;/* V' *»*^'** *¦ # ifc * A * . V . J V « » v » ¦« f ^ ¦ ^ j ^ - - — « — >•• -- w ~ .
ful expression—chin rivalling in delicacy the chin of the great' Bonaparte combined with the thousand tones of that rich musical voice , and a natur al genius fbj * the statuesque , form together a combination o £ natural advan . tages , the effect of which it would be difficult in any woman to conceal . But Ristori has been an anxious student . At times , indeed , it see ma as if her elaborate pantomime lacked feeling ; nor can we avoid thinking that the story , as she tells it , of her first interview with Jason labours under this defect . Nevertheless we are free to confess that throughout most of the performance it was impossible to watchiier without that thrill of emotion which is the surest token of a genuine inspiration . Some critics , indeed , seem to think that the sort of imitation in which this actress indulges verges on the burlesque . Probably in the hands of any but an Italian artist of genius it would be so . But to us that almost exaggerated demonstration , absurd as it would probably be in a self-contained Englishwoman , seems but the abandonment to the genuine feeling of the time . This actress , be it remembered , is from the fiery fickle South , with all its fierce genius . The character which she portrays is the impersonation of a thousand passions . Ristori transforms herself into Medea , and that after the Italian fashion .
To review this play scene by scene , and as it were to mark it for those who have not yet visited the Lyceum :, is not the purpose of a critique . Enough of this sort has been done already . Who has not heard of Medea as she first appears—the picture of royal affliction—descending the rocks with her famished children ? of that grand burst of artistic power , in which , like the very incarnation of jealousy , she seems to tear her rival limb from limb ? Nor will those who witnessed it soon forget the picturesque terrors of that look which Medea casts upon Creusa , ' when drawing aside her long dark curls and stretching her body forward into the innocent girl ' s face , she exclaims : — Non parlai D'Eumenidi e d ' amor duci a delitto ? Non vedesii sul mio livido volto II tartareo segnal che Giove in fronts Dell' oinicida imprime ?
Spake I not Of the Furies and of lore that leads to crime ? Seest thou not on my livid face That mark of rhell which Jove stamps Upon the murderer ' s front ? Not less profoundly pathetic was that first interview with Jason when , in spite of all the wrongs she has suffered at his hands , she persists in the mad hope that he still cares for her . Checked by his coldness in the mid-career of her exultation , for that she has at length found the desire of her eyes , she exclaims with ineffable tenderness : — Forse il lacrimar di sua Morte alia voce , e un disperar che conta Sei lime , e il lungo aspro cammin la mia Sembiauza guastar si , che pellegrina Gli appar ; and then—whilst her half-averted eye still searches for
his—Giasone , 10 son Medea . Let those who doubt the power of Ristori go and watch the burst of overwhelming hate with which , finding Jason and her children lost to her for ever , she takes refuge in the thought of vengeance . Nothing can excel the fine frenzy with which the stalks the stage : — Sangue!—sangue!—strazziar—spezzar suo core Un che di spaventoso atroce strano . . . Un supplizio a natura umana ignoto . . Pari , alfin , so il puote , all' odio mio . Like King Lear to his daughter : I will have such revenges on ye both That all the world shall I will do such things—What they are yet I know not ; but they shall be The terrors of the Earth .
Perhaps the finest effort of that peculiar faculty for physical description which this actress possesses is the scene in which she draws her dagger and imagines herself officiating at the murder of her rival Creusa . . Every ge sture shows the spirit of the Italian avenger—oven the frantic kiss of the dagger as she rushes from the stage . Were it necessary to sum up in a word the peculiar merit of Ristort , we should say it consisted in her voice and her countenance . The tones of that voice express to the ear every vicissitude of thought—tlie play of those features reveals to the eye every alternation of human feeling . It would be rash to pronounce Ristori a consummate actress until she naa displayed her powers in more characters . It may be that her faculties require the extravagance of emotion which is iitting in the Medea . We should ukc w see her in a different part . But as we sat in the stalls of the Lyceum , wo couia not repress the desire of witnessing her interpretation of IauIij ^™ ' ^ ' ° ° Constance in King John . This would test liur powers to the full . M . Montanelli might , perhaps , be induced to lend his aid . ^^^
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BIRTHS , MARRIAGES , AND DEATHS . BIRTHS . PENNANT .-On tlio 11 th hist ., at 30 , Belgravo-square , tho Lady Louisa Douglas Pennant : a daughter . SHAW . —On tho 7 tfyln 8 t ., at 20 , Bolgravc-road , Piinlico , tho , wife . of Georgo Shaw , Esq ., barristor-at-law , prematurely : a son . TOLLEMACHE . — On Saturday , tho 7 th inst .. at South Witham Rectory , Lincolnshire , tho wife of tho Rov . It . W . . Lionel Tollcmacho : a daughter . MARRIAGES . J"ORE 8 TER—MELBOURNE . — On tho 10 th inst ., at St . John ' s Ohuroh , Paddington , by tho Hon . and Rov . Orlando Forester , Lord Forester to Lady Melbourne . HAINGUERLOT-BLOUNT . — On tho Oth insfc ., at tho - Mairteof the 1 st Arrondlsaoment , and afterwards at tho Oh&roh of St . Phillippo dn Roulo , Paris , Edouard , oldest son of Monsieur and Madame Hainguerlot , of tho Chateau de Vlllandry , Indre-ot-Loire , and grandson of tho lato Mor 6 oha \ Oudinot , Duo do Rrgglo , to Alice , eldest daughter of Bdward Blouut , Esq ., of Paris , and niece of , Sir Edward Blount , Bart ., of Mawley , Salop . DEATHS . OAREW . —On the 2 d Inst ., at Oastle Borough , county Woxford , Robort Shapland Lord Carow . K . P ., agod 6 l > . QOOPALL . —On the Oth lnnt .. at 4 , Camdon-squaro , Leonard , the youngest son of Frederick Goodall , A . ll . A . BOOTT . —On tho Oth inst ., at Scndhurst- grange , need 18 , i Goorglna Laura , daughter of tho lion . Frnncia Scott , M . I' .
SHREWSBURY .-On Wednesday , the 4 th inst ., at Paris tho Rt . Hon . Maria Toresri , Countess-Dowager of Shrews- ' bury .
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CORN MARKET . Mark-lano , Friday , Juno 13 , ISM . TitE trade In English and Foreign Wheat in ' " «• " » ^ Vhcat ' or Monday ' s rates . There are very f « w ,, " " r i w ? , mit a rrivo . l Maize off tho co . ihL . A due cargo of J £ » lafat Wliout ai m in good order has been sold at 018 ., and one of Cla w- ^ i" of quality at 55 s .. cost , freight and iiiBuraiico . Alt . o b ^ t . » » of Oalatz Maize arrived with bad report nt '< M > » - ; « l * « " « ^ tho Bamo on passage at : J 0 h . four of Ibrail ou P ^^ Ujnt and one of Ibrail hi a Groob vessel six monUiB o i I » J » ^ aaa ., and a cargo of Saidi Boaus about ( 1 » ° '"" . "" J . «| iirkn frniKht , and insurance . Some cargoes of 'J . nga ««« ]* d Wheat havo been sold at B 2 s . od ., and of Jtordta hk * Marlanopoll at 57 s .. cost , freight and innurai co , <» » di , . diato dhipmout . Harloy , with a trilling bu' ^ I i to 1 h . «>¦ at forinor prices . Oats also are in rtinuosfc at < »•¦ «> 01 , vanco . Beans on tho spot , are Is . dearer , a « 1 cwB » pasuago are lield at IWs . cost , freight and iimuiaiico .
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FROM THE LONDON GAZETTE . Tuesday , June 10 . BANKItUPTS . — Samuet , LovRtocic and Tiiojias FonsTEH . DowAato-hiH and Strcatham , india-rubber manufacturers—John Rose Coumaok , lato of Russell-squaro , boarding -house kcepor — Chaiu . bs Crake Hamilton , Princo ' M-atrect , Bloomsbury , ironmonger—Jameb Gbkbn . Long Buokby , Northamptonshire , coal-merchant—Samubl PiJinsojf , Sun-street , Bishopsgato - street , ironmonger — Thomas SMAtii , Pack , Husband Poswortli , Leicester , grocer — Wiixiam Howe , Coventry , builder—William RoniNfloif Lowb , Wolvorbainpton , manufacturing ebomiHt —Hknky Gomm , Cheltenham , draper;—William Makkb Bbnibok Saheil , Holsworthy , Devonshire , ironmonger—EmvAHD Smith , Leeds , hosier—Jamjbb Holmnkakb , lato of Scotland , near Bacup , and elsewhere , cotton spinner—Jamks DAVHNronT , Macolosflold , watchmaker . SCOTCH ! SEQUESTRATION—W . Paul , Borrowstanncss , ship brokor . Friday , June 13 . BANK . U 1 JPTS . — Edmund Wkdij , Portswood , timbor dealer — William NouroLK , York , tanner — Mauiiiok RiohabdS . Blrmingliam , grocer— OhaklKb JJdwakd J } aok ,
__ Tattonham-ctiurt-road , grooor-Mi > WJK 1 IBIIK ! ' " { " ^ road , oil and colourman-JUiiNitv Jomai-uan JJ * " * *!' Midway-terrace , Lower-road , Rotliorhitho , cowk'jtgor Gkoiotk Nbwsiah Uodsos , Poolo . tnilo r-HrtJiiiBi ) J ««» FiTir . Pwllholl . now of Pcnyohain , Al « "h , ffl draper and grocer -Roheht Skniou and jsteimihn biM «» , Stnuutlill ' e , blanket manufacturora . SCOTCH SEQUESTRATION . —William JJoyd , ojasgow , eoiniuissiou agent .
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Leader (1850-1860), June 14, 1856, page 572, in the Nineteenth-Century Serials Edition (2008; 2018) ncse2.kdl.kcl.ac.uk/periodicals/l/issues/vm2-ncseproduct2145/page/20/
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