From the PREFACE. The Garrick period in the history of the British stage, which is the period of Jefferson the First, has been so fully described by many writers that the present biographer has felt justified in assuming that it is well known, and therefore has touched but lightly upon it, in recounting what is ascertained of this actor. A certain amount of quotation from old chronicles, however, has been deemed essential, for the sake of a basis of authority, and also for the sake of local color. In describing the career ...
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From the PREFACE. The Garrick period in the history of the British stage, which is the period of Jefferson the First, has been so fully described by many writers that the present biographer has felt justified in assuming that it is well known, and therefore has touched but lightly upon it, in recounting what is ascertained of this actor. A certain amount of quotation from old chronicles, however, has been deemed essential, for the sake of a basis of authority, and also for the sake of local color. In describing the career of Jefferson the Second there was an opportunity to dwell with minute attention on the storied days of the old Chestnut Street Theatre, in Philadelphia, - an institution which has never been equalled, for dignity, for intellectual resources, or for splendor of associations, in the history of the stage in America; but it has not been possible, within the limits prescribed for this biography, to give more than a passing glance across that fertile and teeming field. Jefferson the Third, his sister Elisabeth, his wife (Mrs. C. F. Burke-Jefferson), and his step-son (Charles S. T. Burke) are commemorated here, and mention is made of all known scions of the family; the writer's design being to suggest this race of actors in its relation to the times through which it has moved, and to make an authentic groundwork for the researches and illustrative embellishments of future theatrical inquirers. A considerable space will be found allotted to the personation of Rip Van Winkle by Jefferson the Fourth; but this allotment seems warranted by the great importance and phenomenal career of a work which for nearly twenty years has engrossed more of the public attention than any other single dramatic performance of this generation. Not Edwin Booth's Hamlet, nor Ristori's Queen Elizabeth, nor Charles Kean's Louis XL, nor Seebach's Marguerite, nor Adelaide Neilson's Juliet, nor Salvini's Othello has so towered in popularity, or so dominated contemporary thought upon the influence of the stage.
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Add this copy of The Jeffersons to cart. $23.06, new condition, Sold by Paperbackshop rated 4.0 out of 5 stars, ships from Bensenville, IL, UNITED STATES, published 2013 by Hardpress Publishing.
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