7 NOVEMBER 1846, Page 10

THE THEATRES.

The last Shaksperian experiment has been the revival, at Sadler's Wells, of. Measure for Measure; a play which seems at certain long intervals to tempt managers to produce it, but which has never attained a very decided success.

" This is owing partly to the very gloomy character of the piece, partly to the indelicate nature of the subject, which constantly shows itself in spite of all attempts to prune and to chasten. It was curious to observe the 'effect which this latter peculiarity had upon the actors of Sadler's Wells. They not only knew what they had to say, but- they evidently knew also what they had to leave out, and they seemed constantly nervous lest-they might by mistake supply the omissions. To the spectator who took with him a book of the play, the proceeding must have produced the same sensation as that caused by seeing a hornpipe danced among eggs a la Mignon—a constant fear that the smash might ensue. The comic part told much better than the serious. The broad humour of the scene in which Pompey the clown is examined tickled the audience amazingly; the talent of Mr. Scharff, who played Pompey, contributing in no small degree to this fortunate result. Mr. Scharff is a quaint comedian, who has been at great pains to acquire that peculiar species of grotesque oddity which it is usual to give to the clowns and low comic parts in Shak- spere's plays. He has perhaps an over-predilection for grimacing; but it is scarcely fair to call this a fault, considering the conventions according to which these characters have always been played. Lucio, the " fan- tastic," was also a decided point, thanks to the vie comica displayed by a Mr. Hoskins. At first his acting appeared somewhat vapid, but he gained as he went on; and the assurance which he assumed in the latter part of the piece, and the oddity with which he uttered his obtrusive lines in spite of the Duke's injunctions to silence, produced an excellent effect. The serious part, up to the fifth act, went heavily. Miss Laura Addison, who has abundance of energy and passion, is deficient in precisely that quality which is requisite for Isabella—namely, dignity. She was very in- telligent, very amiable; but there was nothing in her demeanour to awe the vicious and the presuming. Phelps, who played the Duke, read well, in spite of some haltings, produced (we see it stated) by his undertaking the part at a very short notice. We are afraid, however, that Mr. Phelps -has not a good ear for metre, since he made many transpositions, which a feeling for the verse would Lye led him almost instinctively to avoid. George Bennet's Angelo was probably the best thing he ever did in his life —well-weighed, earnest, and free from rant.