This story of Mr. Peer is
hardly to be equalled; yet Davies relates of Boheme, the actor, that
when, upon his first appearance upon the stage, he played with some
"itinerants" at Stratford-le-Bow, his feeling but simple manner of
delivering Francisco's short speech in "Hamlet"--
For this relief much thanks: 'tis bitter cold,
And I am sick at heart--
at once roused the audience to a sense of his merits. "His salary was
immediately increased by the manager; and he proved afterwards a great
ornament of the stage."
The delivery of a prologue by an actress--that is to say, of course,
by a boy in female dress, personating the character of a
woman--appears to have been an unusual proceeding upon the Elizabethan
stage. Mr. Collier has noted instances, however. In the case of the
prologue to "Every Woman in her Humour," 1609, spoken by the heroine
Flavia, "Enter Flavia as a Prologue," runs the stage direction; and
she begins--"Gentles of both sexes and of all sorts, I am sent to bid
ye welcome. I am but instead of a prologue, for a she prologue is as
rare as a usurer's alms.
Pages:
199
200
201
202
203
204
205
206
207
208
209
210
211
212
213
214
215
216
217
218
219
220
221
222
223