William Charles Macready, Famous Actor

(Fig 1) 1821 painting of British stage actor William Charles Macready, painted by John Jackson. Macready is credited with helping to revive Shakespeare on the London stage and abroad.

A second celebrity figure Lyon encountered was William Charles Macready (1793-1873), tragedian of the stage both at home and abroad. Lyon saw Macready perform on Monday April 26^th, 1826. He does not say where, but research reveals that Macready was engaged to perform at Drury Lane Theatre, pictured below, for a mere six-week stretch. Later that year, Macready embarked on an eight-month tour of the United States. Attending a play or theatrical performance could be a point of pride for any British citizen of any social class.

The practice of theater was also heavily influenced by the increasing urban audience in cities like London. Shakespearean plays saw a resurgence because their content appealed to both the common man and upper-class viewers. Shakespeare was a hefty portion of Macready’s repertoire, and his own private journals, Reminiscences, fondly mention leading roles in Macbeth and Henry IV, among others. The portrait of Macready to the left (fig. 1) depicts Macready dressed up as Shakespeare's Henry IV. The portrait is now part of the National Portrait Gallery, London's collection.

On April 26, 1826, when Lyon was in audience attendance at the Drury Lane Theatre production of Virginius, he saw Macready perform as Virginius and Miss Maria Foote perform as Virginia. Lyon described the experience in limited but admirable terms, saying he “was much entertained with MaCredy as Virgenus, Miss Foote as Virgenia was also interesting” (Lyon 14). Lyon would have been seeing Macready perform at the height of the British actor's popularity.

In his Reminiscences, April of 1826, Macready writes, “The absence of Kean[i], who had gone to the United States again, made young Elliston very urgent with me to return to Drury Lane; but six weeks were all I could spare to London from my more profitable country engagements…” (Macready 222). Edmund Kean, a notable tragedian, had helped to ensure the Drury Lane Theatre’s popularity, drawing impressive audiences with his portrayals of villains (Drury Lane Theatre). Kean’s tour of the U.S. meant that Elliston, newly charged with his father’s theater, was desperate to keep the audience flowing in for performances. This opportunity—while not as lucrative as “traveling the circuit”—would have been too delectable to pass up for Macready, who was constantly feuding with Kean over prominence[ii]. In his youth, Macready “had realised that a player with London ambition had to reach either Drury Lane or Covent Garden; no matter how struggling and debt-ridden, they held in theory the sole privilege or presenting the legitimate drama” (Trewin xvii). Macready performed at both theaters with regularity.

Aquatint print of a scene at the Drury Lane Theatre in 1821 from a series of similar prints by George and Robert Cruikshank illustrating Pierce Egan's Real Life in London.

Lyon’s access to Drury Lane Theatre suggests likewise an access to Covent Garden Theatre, as both were broadening audiences to include the upper, middle, and lower classes. Indeed, Lyon sat at the threshold of a cultural shift in theater. The nineteenth century is truly when theater became populist; the Drury Lane Theatre could seat 3,000 people (“19^th-Century Theatre”). It is evident from his diaries that Lyon enjoyed going to the theater. Some of his diary entries include remarks about the plays and performances he saw, as well as miniature reviews of his impressions. Seeing Macready perform must have been a treat for Lyon. During this period, Macready was one of the leading tragedian actors in Britain and with his rival Kean abroad, the audience draw must have been huge. 

Macready writes about his preparation for the role of Virginius, which is what Lyon saw him perform. He writes:

"My every thought was engrossed by Virginius. I had perfected myself roughly in the words of the part before presenting the play…whilst every vacant hour was employed in practice, to give smoothness to those pathetic touches and those whirlwinds of passion in the part, which in the full sway of their fury required the actor’s self-command to insure the correctness to every tone, gesture, and look." (Macready 152)