Page:Henry IV Part 2 (1921) Yale.djvu/160

148 Act II contains the rest of Shakespeare's Act II, with the Warkworth Castle scenes omitted.

Act III begins with the scene at Shallow's house, but the rest of the act follows Shakespeare.

Act IV begins with the King's soliloquy on sleep, taken from Act III; then comes the scene of the King's death, followed by the scene in which Silence sings; and the act closes with the interview between the Lord Chief Justice and King Henry V.

In Act V, Betterton omits the comic scenes (i. and iv.), and opens the act with the King's progress to Westminster Abbey. Falstaff is rebuked, but is not sent to the Fleet, and the play concludes with an abridgment of the first Act of Henry V.

Betterton had the good taste not to tamper with Shakespeare's wording to any great extent.

On December 17, 1720, at Drury Lane, the play was revived again. It was acted five nights successively and once afterwards. It was in this revival that Cibber first appeared as Justice Shallow and made 'one of the great successes of the day.' Mills was Falstaff, and Wilks the Prince. Eleven years later (1731) came another Drury Lane revival, with Mills as the Prince, Harper as Falstaff, and Cibber still playing Shallow. Five years later (1736) the same company, with the exception of Harper, produced the play again at Drury Lane for the benefit of the great Quin, who played Falstaff. In 1744 and 1749 there were revivals at the Covent Garden Theatre, Quin again playing Falstaff.

A performance at Drury Lane in 1758 was made notable by Garrick's first appearance in the rôle of the King. He had appeared as Hotspur in Part I twelve years before, but had not achieved great success in that role. As the King in Part II 'his figure did not assist him, but the forcible expression of his countenance, and his energy of utterance, made ample amends for the defect of person.' 