William Charles Macready as William Tell

Painted in 1826, Henry Inman’s portrait of William Charles Macready depicts the actor in the role of William Tell. The painting is held in the collection of the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York, where it is part of the American Wing. It measures 76.8 by 63.5 centimeters.

Specific inventory or accession numbers are not provided in the available sources, and no exhibition history is documented.

The 1826 oil on canvas portrait by Henry Inman, listed in The American Wing of the Metropolitan Museum of Art, portrays actor William Macready in the role of William Tell. As a representative example of early American portraiture, the work illustrates the period’s interest in theatrical subjects and the status of performers within society. Its inclusion in a major museum collection underscores its historical significance and the scholarly attention it has received as part of Inman’s broader body of portraiture.

Painted in 1826 by Henry Inman, this oil on canvas portrait depicts the English actor William Charles Macready in the title role of Friedrich Schiller's play William Tell. The work captures Macready in a theatrical pose, dressed in a green coat and white shirt, holding a crossbow in his left hand while his right arm extends upward as if aiming at an apple. Inman isolates the figure against a neutral background, removing stage scenery and audience to focus entirely on the actor's dramatic expression and physical tension.

Created during Macready's early career in London, the painting serves as a significant record of his performance style and the popularity of Schiller's tragedy in the early 19th century. Inman, an American artist who traveled to Europe, produced this work while studying abroad, demonstrating his ability to render contemporary theatrical figures with psychological depth. The composition emphasizes the narrative moment of the famous apple-shot, freezing the action to highlight the actor's command of the stage.