ROMEO & JULIET: English Stage Actress Ellen Terry ~ Potion Scene (1911)

English stage actress Ellen Terry (1847-1928) / Romeo & Juliet -- Potion Scene (Act 4, Scene 3) / Shakespeare / Recorded: February 28, 1911 --
LADY CAPULET:
Good night... get thee to bed, and rest; for thou hast need.
(Exeunt LADY CAPULET and Nurse)
JULIET:
Farewell! God knows when we shall meet again.
I have a faint cold fear thrills through my veins,
That almost freezes up the heat of life:
I'll call them back again to comfort me:
Nurse! What should she do here?
My dismal scene I needs must act alone.
Come, vial.
What if this mixture do not work at all?
Shall I be married then to-morrow morning?
No, no: this shall forbid it: lie thou there.
(Laying down her dagger)
What if it be a poison, which the friar
Subtly hath minister'd to have me dead,
Lest in this marriage he should be dishonour'd,
Because he married me before to Romeo?
I fear it is: and yet, methinks, it should not,
For he hath still been tried a holy man.
How if, when I am laid into the tomb,
I wake before the time that Romeo
Come to redeem me? there's a fearful point!
Shall I not, then, be stifled in the vault,
To whose foul mouth no healthsome air breathes in,
And there die strangled ere my Romeo comes?
Or, if I live, is it not very like,
The horrible conceit of death and night,
Together with the terror of the place,--
As in a vault, an ancient receptacle,
Where, for these many hundred years, the bones
Of all my buried ancestors are packed:
Where bloody Tybalt, yet but green in earth,
Lies festering in his shroud; where, as they say,
At some hours in the night spirits resort;--
Alack, alack, is it not like that I,
So early waking, what with loathsome smells,
And shrieks like mandrakes' torn out of the earth,
That living mortals, hearing them, run mad:--
O, if I wake, shall I not be distraught,
Environed with all these hideous fears?
And madly play with my forefather's joints?
And pluck the mangled Tybalt from his shroud?
And, in this rage, with some great kinsman's bone,
As with a club, dash out my desperate brains?
O, look! methinks I see my cousin's ghost
Seeking out Romeo, that did spit his body
Upon a rapier's point: stay, Tybalt, stay!
Romeo, I come! this do I drink to thee.
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Dame Ellen Terry, GBE (February 27, 1847 - July 21, 1928): English stage actress who became the leading Shakespearean actress in Britain. Born into a family of actors, Terry began acting as a child in Shakespeare plays and continued as a teen, in London and on tour. At sixteen she married the much older artist George Frederic Watts, but they separated within a year. She briefly returned to acting but then began a relationship with the architect Edward William Godwin and retired from the stage for six years. She returned to acting in 1874 and was immediately acclaimed for her portrayal of roles in Shakespeare and other classics. In 1878 she joined Henry Irving's company as his leading lady, and for more than the next two decades she was considered the leading Shakespearean and comic actress in Britain. Two of her most famous roles were Portia in The Merchant of Venice and Beatrice in Much Ado About Nothing. She and Irving also toured with great success in America and Britain. In 1903 Terry took over management of London's Imperial Theatre, focusing on the plays of George Bernard Shaw and Henrik Ibsen. The venture was a financial failure, however, and Terry then toured and later also lectured. She continued to find acting success until 1920, while also appearing in films until 1922. Her career lasted nearly seven decades.
The FULL wikipedia article can be found here: en.wikipedia.or...
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[@Labienus]

Great historical record I think we have a tendency to judge the past by our own current standards which is why the classifiying of styles of approach in music is so much more valid yes it seems a declamation style unacceptable today, however why are some modern approaches superior? at least you can hear the words here-and sure you couldn't get hired doing it this way today- my biggest problem is that it is an older woman's voice already near the end of career probably not performing the role

[@jamesracioppi2574]

Wonderful record of her performance. Stylistic differences notwithstanding the words and images are crystal clear and the horror of Juliet's imaginings incredibly vivid. Can't think of any modern interpretation that paints it so well.

[@EdmundStAustell]

This is absolutely wonderful, Doug! I just love these historical theatrical recordings! What fantastic diction! Over a century ago, and every single word! What a performance!

[@CurzonRoad]

Most welcome, quite a time capsule, thank YOU, Edmund!

[@janetjennings5802]

My mothers maiden name was Terry.She was related to her.Great to hear her voice.

[@CurzonRoad]

Thank YOU, Barbara!

[@oakroom48]

Amazing - what an education! Thank you, Doug :-)

[@CurzonRoad]

More to come soon... Thank you, Chris!

[@CurzonRoad]

According to Victor logs (readily available online via the Encyclopedic Discography of Victor Recordings) on February 21 & 28 of 1911 Ellen Terry recorded the following: Mercy speech; Potion scene; I have brought Claudio; Ophelia's mad scene; Mamilius, Hermione, and ladies; Death of Falstaff.... long and short, glad all was accomplished!

[@CurzonRoad]

To our way of thinking, yes very dated. Similarly circa two decades later even the great John Barrymore in his recitals for Victor. Thank you, Nate!

[@transformingArt]

Do you have other Ellen Terry Recordings? I especially love "The Quality of Mercy" speech from "The Merchant of Venice"......

[@delbond5977]

Thank you for sharing. Why has there no film or tv programme about her ?.

[@CurzonRoad]

A good question for which I have no answer! Thank YOU!

[@CurzonRoad]

Most notably Teddy Roosevelt, William Jenning Bryan, William Howard Taft, and Woodrow Wilson all recorded political messages. Marston released a CD in the late 90s with many of their selections. Thank you, Marshall!

[@webrarian]

Interesting that Terry makes no attempt to lighten her voice to sound younger. There's a touch of Margaret Rutherford about her voice, and more than a touch of Arthur Marshall as Dame Angela Marvell. None of which is to detract from this magnificent performance.

[@Labienus]

OK!-Well the terms seemed loaded for this channel-and generally, no, almost always, it's marked by its sincerity-agree or disagree-but it is You tube after all! and you never can tell who you run into In general to put yourself back into another time and appreciate its value is rare enough I will

[@Labienus]

No, I didn't realize "everything" improves over time...that probably applies to smart phones though. I wonder if the performances in Shakespeare's time would have been considered "ill-informed" by us? Yes our communications are quick-some knowledge is "vast"-but where do you go to get "all past errors "eradicated"special chambers for that? My point was that Juliet benefits from a less matrronly sounding voice, not that I was unhappy it was recorded

[@webrarian]

Search YT for "Seventy Marvellous Years", Doug...

[@2ndviolinist]

Don't you realize that everything improves over time, that we continually correct the ill-informed approaches of the past? With our vast knowledge and instant communications all past errors are being eradicated. As to being the end of her career, recording clearly much before this date was impossible. Someone must have felt her performance of this role too important to not record, older or not.

[@nikolazekic549]

Your idea of continual progress is laughable. Were it true, the civilisations that have perished would live on instead.

[@Labienus]

Doug-must be among you collectors ones that just specialize in spoken word-what is our there-politicians too?-now that I'm sure would seem old-fashioned

[@2ndviolinist]

Sorry, my sarcasm was not obvious enough. I agree with you 100%. Check out my channel and you will see, you would enjoy it, I think. Doug