The National Register. — London, England, 1818-11-15 00:00:00

.S is NOV l5 THE .DRAM.I. DRURY LANE THEATRE. covENTA; A ADEN. The tragedy of Romeo and Juliet was on Monday' night perform . ed at this theatre. The chameter ofJulict, for the first time, by Mrs. West. Mrs. West's powers, and the beauty of her person and fitce, fit her in a pe culiar manner for this character ; her perflirmance was highly interesting throughout, but she was more espe cially applauded in the garden scene, in the scene with her nurse, in that in which she takes the sleeping po tion, and in the subsequent one in which she awakes, and discovers herself in the arms of her lover. Mr. H. Kcncble's Romeo improves on repetition. The house was respectably tilled. Last Friday evening was revived the comedy of Love makes a Man, or the Fop's Fortune. This piece though reputed to be written by Colley Cibber, is the production of a much older author, and merely altered by him. Of the plot we shall say little, as probably most of our readers • are acquainted with 4t, mid even that of a new play is in general better omitted ; for what good purpose does it answer ? Those who have witnessed the performance will cer tainly not read the plot, and for those who have not, and intend doing so, it surely spoils the interest of the enter tainment. Then to what class of readers can it be inte testing?—to those who never intend to visit the theatre? .And will !hose of the latter description take the trouble, or have the curiosity to peruse a theatrical account We think these will not so far honour us, andtherefore shall, for the advantage of the two first classes of our readers, omit the fable. The piece in question is an entertaining bustling co medy, rather approaching to farce, and partaking of the same inconsistencies. But perhaps, after all, in consistency ought not to be so much abused, for is it not the most prominent feature in the character of most men ? Upon proper consideration, - we believe most people will be of this sentiment, if they will take the trouble ofstudying their neighbours. But to return in our comedy, it is lively and interesting, and the audience throughout will not feel inclined to take a nap, by any dull or heady scenes. Mundell was in excellent humour and irresistably laughabie. Mr H. Kemble played the part of Carlos with considerable spirit, the tip, C/odio, was particularly well supported by Mr. Penley. In his scene with bon Decart, the duellist, he was eminently successful, and throughout the whole of • his performance acquitted himself extremely well. Mr. Watkinson and Mr. Williams were respectable in Don Antonio and Dm Charino. The female parts were also very tvell sustained. Mrs. West rendered that of An gelina peculiarly a;:tractive by her graceMl and inte resting deportment : indeed, the more we see of this young lady's acting, the more we are confirmed in our opinion of her excellence. The parts of Louisa and Elvira were ably supported by Mrs. Orger. «e must not forget to bestow deserved praise on this piece as being perfectly free from the licentiousness of the old dramatic school, at least as it is now acted. It met with considerable applause from a respectable audi ence. In the afterpicce of Barmecide, Mr. Cowel took Mr. Harley's part, who is still confined by indisposition, and supported it in a very able manner. • Rowe's tragedy of Jane Shore was performed at this Theatre on Mondry night. The announcement of Miss O'Neil for the heroine of the piece, Miss Somerville for the character of Alicia, and Mr. Booth's re-appearance in that of Gloucester, formed altogether attraction suf ficient to fill the house to an overflow before the curtain rose. Miss O'Neil as Jane Shore, has, on former oc casions, folly established her claim to excellence ; but stimulated by the circumstance of playing in concert with Miss Somerville, she put forth all her unrivalled powers, and was eminently successful. On no occasion have we seen her moic so. In her interview with Gloucester, in which she declares her readiness to de vote her life, if necessary, to the service of King lid. ward's children, and blesses Hastings fn. his declara tion of similar sentiments, she was forcible and ener getic, and called down the most rapturous applause ; whilst her appeal to the feelings, in her interview with fie husband, was irresistible, and produced a visible ether; on the audience. Miss Somerville, in .Ilicia, was nost•favourablv received, and deservedly so. She gave a judicious and spirited picture of the revengeful, .jea laus, designing female. In her quairel with Hastiws she displayed powers of no common description ; whilst her remorse and self condemnation when She finds that she has involved her lover in the ruin which she only intended for her innocent unsuspecting friend, was equally well depicted; and the bitierness with which she even denied a draught of water to the untigtuttate victim of her revenge . —the distraction of her own mind —and the remorse of conscience felt by her for the nti s.ries she bad' occasioned to herself and others, were forcibly expressed, and rapturously applauded by the audience. tier perfinunanee was, on the whole, highly creditable to tier powers. Mr. Booth, as Gloiseester, was greeted on his entree with the warmest welcome. The cheering of his friends, failed, however, to inspire Itu ‘Ve regret we ate obliged to declare our °Anion, irtyr. NATIONAL REGISTER. judging from the specimen he afforded us on Monday night, that he has nor impnmied during his provincial tour. His performance, with the exception of his in terview with Jane Shore, was as tame and spiritless as we ever witnessed ; scarce one sentence in ten which he uttered reached the audience at a distance from the stage beyond the third or fourth row of the Pit. The gods in the gallery, disappointed and displeased at this dumb shew exhibition, became vociferous, calling on him to speak louder.—This produced from others cries equally loud tin. silence ; and the uproar at length be came so great during the scene in the third act,.bctweeu Gloucester and Hastings, that nca:ly the whole of the scene passed over without a single word being heard.— Mr Young played floslings with his usual ahility.— His quarrel with Alicia was excellent. Macready played Shore, and made as much of it as the character would admit nt. The Ballet of Paul and Virginia followed, and went off extremely well. The Comedy of The Soldier's Danghter was performed on Wednesday, at this Theatre; when Mr. W. Farren appeared in a new character, that Of Governor Mortal!. His representation of this character was spirited and forcible. The warm, honest, irritable, and open hearted old soldier found a faithful and able represen tative in him. He was loudly applauded throughout, especially in the scene with the Widow Cheerly, in which she recounts to him the, exploits of the Governor. His exulting tone, while joining with her in the ex pression of—" Thus said the Giwernor,"—and—" Thus did the Governor,"—applying them to himself, was excellent, and drew down the loudest approbation.— Miss O'Neill played the if Checrly. This charac ter is by no means the best suited to her peculiar ta lents: it is,. indeed, beneath her powers; she cannot descend to it. The picture which she gave of the amiable widow, though not possessing the sprightliness and vivacity which we have seen thrown into it by its great original, Mrs. Jordan, was highly interesting.— he house was mast respectably filled. The new farce produced on Friday night at this theatre experienced a very indifferent reception, or in other words, may be considered, we believe, as dismis sed from the stage. Perhaps the title of this piece, Six Physicians or, the Patient carried of, half con tributed to its ill success; we are certain that the plot and the dialogue worked out the other half of the ca tastrophe : the idea of introducing six physicians or per sons in the disguise of physicians, was ahappy idea; and tha?mployment of thym when introduced, was equal to it in felicity : the plot, in fact, is incumbefed by these personages; and the whole business might have been effected much better by limiting the number tQ two.— The object is to carry off the ward of an old gentleman, who, being in love with her, and anxious to keep her to himself, adopts the ingenious expedient of persuading ber she is ill, to prevent all access to her; the lover, disguised as one of these physicians, frustrates ull the precautions of her guardian. Liston had a character assigned hint, but it neither possessed any merit as character, or for the scope it afforded to the display of his abilities. The attempts at wit or humour were chiefly limited to allusions to the medical profession, and were of a truly despicable quality. The fate of the farce became evident soon after the commencement of the second act; and the latter part of it was rendered quite inaudible. As no attempt was made to announce the piece ibr repetition, we conclude that the managers acquiesce in the decision of the audience ; it would be difficult to offer any plea in arrest of judgment. A meeting of new Renters of Drury-lane Theatre was held on Thursday, in the Saloon, to receive the report of the Committee, appointed by a General Meeting of their body, on the 15th of June, 1816. The report having, been read, the meeting proceeded to elect Sir Thomas Turton and Mr. Fallowfield trus tees, in the room of Messrs. Houlston and Graham, resigned. Mr. G. Robins dwelt upon the depressed state of the Theatre, the nightly receipts of which, he said, did not at present cover the expences. The dramatic veteran "Gentleman Smith," who is now• in the 90th year of his age, is still living at his favourite residence, near Bury, in Suffolk, and enjoys tolerable health and good spirits, but has not visited the theatre for some time past. During Miss O'Neill's last professional trip to Bury, he expressed a wish to be per sonally introduced to her, which he was by Mr. Bel lamy, the manager, and the interview was highly pleasing to both parties. Mr. Booth, of Covent Garden Theatre, conceiving that the Manager does not duly appreciate his talents, has offered to cancel his engagement, on being allowed to retain one third of his salary. llarley, of Drury Lane Theatre, who was suddenly seized with a lit, on Saturday sc'nuight, is now much recovered. We arc sorry to learn front the Jamaica papers, that some attempts were made, in the month of September last, to set fire to the town of Port Royal. Wednesday a Court of Directors was held at the East India House, when Captain C. S. Timins was sworn into the cemmand of the ship Bricigewa;cr, *unsigned to Chios direct, ARCTIC EXPEDITION. Ativices were received in town on Thursday, of the return of Captain Ross, in the Isabella, with his cons. iianion, the Alexander sloop, Lieutenant Parry, to Shetland, atier a fruitless attempt to penetrate through Rehring's Straits past the American continent. It is said that Capt. Ross almost reached the latitude of 73 deg. and traversed the whole of Davis's Straits, and found inhabitants, but could not discover the smallest operiing sufficient to admit the entrance ofa ship. Sai. cam has, however, derived sonic advantage, as he has. been enabled to trace the line of coast with greater ac— curacy, and to alter the positions which had been as. signed to it in all the charts. The subjoined are girea_ as the results: • " The Isabella and the Alexander discovery ships, arc safely arrived in Brassa Sound, Lerwick, all well ; neither ship having lost a man, nor having a man is the sick list. Captain Russ has completely succeeded in exploring every part of Baffin's Bay, and, with the exception of errors in the latitudes and longitudes, of verifying the statements of that out and able navigator whose name it bears, and of ascertaining that no pas.. sage exists between the Atlantic and l'acific Oceans through Davis's Straits and Baffin's Bay, the whole being found to be surrounded by high lan►l, extending. to the north as far as lat. 77.55. and long. 76. W. ; and in the 74th degree of latitude, stretching 'vestward as far as Bt. W. longitude. They traced the same the whole way down to the Cape Walsingham of Davis,. which they asce►tained to lie ,in hat 66. and long. 60. ;. from hence they stood for Resolution Island, nod then stood homeward. •They have made many curious ob servations and discoveries, of which, perhaps, will not be considered as the least interesting, that of a nation being found to inhabit the Arctic regions, between the • latitudes of 76. and 78., who thought that the world to the South was take ; that generation hail succeeded generation of a people who had never tasted the fruits of the earth, had no idea of a Supreme Being, •who never had an enemy, and whose Chiefs had hitherto. supposed themselves monarchs of the universe. There now remains only to be discov►►red the termination s if. lit has one, of Middleton's Repulse Bay, and, a feci.de ' grecs to the northward of it, to determine whether Greenland be an island or joins America ; and 'this might with the greatest ease be done from the northern. most station of the Hudson's Bay Company in any ono season." The hope of discovery in the northern scat is not wholly laid aside ; though that which has been already ascertained rather depreciates the importance of what remains. We consider an expedition which proves • that there is no north-west .passage to the vast Pacific, to have succeeded in its object as completely as if the - result had been the reverse ; except, indeed, it was to, be expected that the mariners would make a passage if they did not find one. The task of the officers and seamen sent on the discovery, would indeed have been . more arduous, if they had found an opening, which• they must have traced ; but their duty was simply to ascertain the fact, and that we suppose they have • done. The voyage to the Pole will, it is said, be tried again next year ; and the adhesion of Greenland to Amerisa, or its separation front that continent, ascer— • tained by examination. Paris and Brussels papers have arrived: The King• on Sunday gave a private audience to the Spanish , Ambassador, the Duc de Fernan Nunez, who delivered a letter from his Sovereign. These journals conjecture that the Duc de Richelieu will return to Paris on the • ►sth or IGth instant. Some accounts from Aix-1a— Chapelle mention that the Emperor of Russia intended - to set out from thence tbr Brussels on Monday last, . where splendid fetes are preparing ; other statements defer his Imperial Majesty's departure till Monday next. The latter advices also announce, that the peror of Austria will leave Aix-la-Chapelle on the 18th instant, for his own capital.—The King of Prussia , returned to Aix la-Chapelle on Sunday last —A ragraph in the Brussels papers, dated from Aix-1a...- Chapelle, asserts that the Congress of Ministers has • entertained the consideration of the late of !siapoleon, On Monday the Due d'Angouleme arrived at Aix-la- Chapelle. The motive of his Royal Ilighness's visiC was to return the compliment of a similar nature paid . by their !mperial and Royal Majesties to the King of- - France on the late occasion. Mr. Baring reached Aix... la-Chapelle the night bcfiwe the Due d'Angouleme ar rived there; and on Monday a conference was held at the house of Prince Ilardenberg, on the subject of a. proposition made by France 14 an extension of the term originally agreed upon tor the discharge of her • pecuniary o bligations. It was reported at the date of the last letters, that France required a much longer - time than had been already intimated ; a request, in which it was supposed that Prussia would nut acquiesce. without reluctance. The Duke of Gloucester was at Lausanne on the (28th of October, on his return from Italy. On the 29th, the public authorities in the town gave a dialler.. to his Serene Ilightuas. , 34. t -1J