Chtatrto.
The present week has been distinguished by two very creditable mani- festations of the "legitimate" drama at theatres far beyond the line of demarcation mown to the old patrons of the stage. At Sadler's Wells— which, by the way, is now as recognized an establishment as the Hay- market—there is The Tempest; made, of course, a vehicle of spectacle, but of that sort of spectacle in which invention and poetical feeling are discernible throughout. Let us add, that Mr. Phelps, notwithstanding the liberality with which he has put the piece upon the stage, has distin- guished the principals from the accessories of the drama by an artistieal instinct ; and that Mr. Fenton's beautiful combinations of faery grota and blue waters which seem to indicate an ardent follower of Mr. W. Be- verley, embellish the action without overwhelming it. As specimens of histrionic art, we have the Prospero of Mr. Phelps, rendered with singu- lar delicacy ; and the Caliban of Mr. Barrett, who penetrates more deep- ly into the brutish nature of his monstrous hero than most of his prede- cessors.
At the Surrey, which reopened on Monday with the novel attraction of thorough cleanliness, the First Part of Henry the Fourth is represented in most satisfactory style. Surrounding themselves with all sorts of de- corative wealth in the shape of scenery, real armour, and the like,_ so as to produce an effective series of histoncal tableaux, the managers, Messrs. Shepherd and Creswick, have made the histrionic details as perfect as the- resources of their establishment will admit. They respectively take upon themselves the characters of the Prince and Hotspur, which they play with great spirit ; and they have brought to light a hitherto over- looked talent in the person of a Mr. Vollair • who acts Falstaff, some- what over loudly, indeed, but with a knowledge of business and a force of colouring that would do credit to an actor of long standing.
It may be remarked that both these revivals give evidence of a growing determination to adhere to the text of Shakspere. At Sadler's Wells, the first Beene—the " Tempest" itself—is restored, and made to answer mechanical purposes' and at the Surrey we have that notable dispute. between Hotspur and Glendower which everybody knows nearly by rote, but which no one has witnessed upon the stage.
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