A Jubilee of Playgoing Author:Peter Hanley Purchase of this book includes free trial access to www.million-books.com where you can read more than a million books for free. This is an OCR edition with typos. Excerpt from book: very effective. Mr. Forrester completely lost his identity as Peter Hayes; it was as fine a piece of character acting as could be conceived. The following press ... more »notice fully bears out what I have written :— " Mr. Forrester seems to have made a most careful study of his part, for one more truthful to nature it would be hard to conceive. In the first act, as the dreamy, tetchy inventor, harassed about money matters, blamed even by his own child, and yet so wrapped up in his work that nothing- troubles him but the dread of losing his models, Mr. Forrester's acting is really very fine, and the good impression is strengthened through the second act, where the display of gratified malice, on finding that he has compassed the 'destruction of his rival inventor's machine, was one of the best pieces of acting we have seen for some time. And again in the last act, where Peter Hayes is reduced to a tottering old man, faint and weary till the idea of fresh revenge lights up the old spirit in him once more, Mr. Forrester's acting was all that could be desired. No greater compliment could be paid to it than the burst of groans that greeted him from the gallery on his appearance after the second act, each telling how he had moved his audience to believe in his machinations."— Echo, 13/5/78. At the Park Theatre in October, 1878, I had a great treat in witnessing the performance of " Richard III." ; Mr. Forrester appearing in the role of Richard, and it would be impossible for the character to be played better. He .was the versatile villain to the life, from his opening soliloquy, which was delivered with fine elocutionary skill, to his death ; it was one complete triumph. He was called before the curtain after each act, and warmly cheered at the end. I consider his Richard quite worthy to r...« less