Mr. Wood's _Alonzo_ and _Jaffier_. We cannot,
however, drop Mr. Wood there, since we rather glanced at, than reviewed
his performances. The public no doubt expect something more from us on
that gentleman's subject: the rapid advances he makes to professional
excellence, and the large space he now fills in public estimation, leave
to the critic no discretion. Such as the actor is, he must be shown. It
is a duty which we could not evade if we would; and we should be sorry
to be so deficient in taste, as not to discharge it with pleasure.

Of no actor with whom we are acquainted can it with more truth be said
than it may of Mr. Wood, that he never performs a character positively
ill. A judgment clear, sound, and in general severely correct, with
exemplary labour and industry, secure him completely, even in those
characters for which he is least fitted, from offending the taste of his
auditors, or rendering his performance ridiculous; an assertion we would
hazard on the head of very few if any actors in America. This is to put
our opinion of him at once at the lowest: yet even that would appear
something to any one who could conceive the disgust with which it often
falls to our lot to turn from the scene before us.

There is not in the whole catalogue of acting plays a character more
disadvantageous to an actor, than that of Alonzo. A compound of
imbecility and baseness, yet an object of commiseration: an unmanly,
blubbering, lovesick, querulous creature; a soldier, whining, piping and
besprent with tears, destitute of any good quality to gain esteem, or
any brilliant trait or interesting circumstance to relieve an actor
under the weight of representing him. In addition to this, there are so
many abrupt variations and different transitions that it requires great
talents in an actor to get through it, without incurring a share of the
contempt due to the character. Viewing him in this way, we could not
help regretting that it should devolve upon a young actor, who could
scarcely expect to escape unhurt in it. Our surprise was great, nor was
our pleasure less, to find in Mr. Wood's performance, a pleasing marked
delineation of the best features of Alonzo, with the worst considerably
softened and relieved. Seldom is a character so indebted to the aid of
an actor as this to the judgment of Mr. Wood. Dr. Young's muse flags
most dolefully in this part, and Mr. Wood did more than could be
expected to bear her up. We could not help