The Press.
London, England, 1856-12-27 00:00:00

MUSICAL MANIFESTATIONS.

THE first indications of musical vitality in town,
after the autumn festivals a:e over, and after the
" Bohemian " minstrels (by " Bohemian " is meant
that cosmopolite class of artists, vocal and instru.
mental, who begin their wanderings after the close
of the regular subscription season) have ceased to
scour the provinces of the United Kingdom, are the
Promenade Concerts of Jullien, and the opening of
the choral societies. These performances, with a
stray soiree here and there, a couple of capital con•
certs of the Amateur Musical Society, conducted by
that clever composer, Mr. Leslie, constitute the
principal items of attraction up to Christmas. Jullien
this year has not been up to the mark, or rather has
not attained in his new quarters at Her Majesty's
Theatre the crashing climax of his former days.
Was the siege of Sebastopol Jullien's roaring
ap them? Have the Surrey-gardens' drum de
monstrations, and the suavities of the Zouaves
(improvised in London), diminished Jullien's attrac-
bon in the western hemisphere? It is not easy to
account for the fact, but the potage d la Jullien in
the Haymarket was but sorry stuff, after the strongly
spiced plats of the ancient cuisine. The " French
Quadrille" did not take : perhaps that was Palmers-
ices fault, for the Premier has an abstract hatred of

I

DECEMBER 27, 1856.

sence of such persons produces its effect upon the
management. We find good pieces, well played by
a company in winch, if there are no brilliant actors,
there are no stupid ones, and where decoration is the
assistance, not the essence of the representation.
Sadler's Wells is now the aristocracy of the
drama.

The puff system now in vogue can therefore do
little mischief. The private patrons of the actress
do not care what the press says, and the rest of the
house come with the same stolid stupidity, applaud-
ing vulgarity and utterly neglecting good acting, let
the press say what it likes. The "criticisms " are
very good advertisements, but, despite the silly sen-
sitiveness of the profession, they have no other effect
with such audiences as now assemble. Actors think
differently, but they know nothing about the matter,
and collect their ideas from little cliques. Managers
know all about it, and take care to secure, not criti-
cisms, but advertisements. How they do it is best
known to themselves and their critics. Some mana-
gers give champagne, some get at a writer in another
way, and some furnish the criticisms themselves to
such papers as will insert them. The whole system
is very rotten, but not. very deleterious.
As we have not put on a force of reporters—a
contemporary (the best theatrical organ going)
announces that he has seventeen !—and do not
trust the " holiday notices," we can only look at the
hills. We shall probably take an opportunity here-
after of mentioning any of the Christmas productions
that are worth it, but this week we have no criticism
to offer. The largest theatre, Drury Lane, gives a
pantomime, in which the foolery of doubling the
number of the performers is adhered to; and the
smallest, the Strand, offers a lady harlequin and
clown, and a singing columbine. Against the last
innovation of all we have nothing to say—all the
rest is atrocious. The Haymarket dramatic com-
pany is very weak, but the spectacles here are
usually tasteful. The pantomime is probably a good
one, as Mr. 13uckstone, though he cannot turn the
demimonde into artists, usually shows much spirit and
good sense in what is within his power. At Mr.
Kean's the pantomime is no doubt very showy, and
he usually introduces some graceful feature which
refines this class of spectacle. His last " Shake-
sperian revival" still menaces us in the bills ; it
consists of a magic-lantern effect repeated to bore-
dom, one pretty dance round a Maypole, and a
concluding scene of fairies and lamps, and this is
far inferior to the one got up by poor Mme. Vestris
in the same play—a word that reminds us to add
that the revival consists of passages from the Mid-
summer Night's Dream, delivered worse than we
believed possible. At the Lyceum there is a bur-
lesque introduction to a pantomime, upon which card
the fortunes of the management are probably staked.
Mr. Dillon has been much puffed. The truth about
him is, that he is a practised but unrefined melo-
dramatic actor, not so good as Mr. Anderson, but
better than Mr. Hicks, and by no means recognised
by the public as an attractive actor. Mrs. Mellon,
+tie Woolgar, is the actress here, and an excellent
One, with blemishes acquired at the Adelphi, where
any artist would he spoiled by the audience. At
the last-named house is Mr. Webster, one of the
two best serious actors in England (the other being
Mr. Phelps), and here he frequently acts very finely,
and as often very carelessly, as if despairing to make
an impression in the unappreciating blockheads
who have just bellowed applause at a bit of intolerable
buffoonery. Here is Mme. Celeste, who ought long since
to have resigned the stage and become stage-manager,
as in her present position she interposes between
the public and more attractive artists, while her
stage knowledge, which would be valuable if applied
to a whole piece, can do little towards making her
own parts interesting. The introduction to the pan-
tomitne is by Mr. Mark Lemon. At the Olympic
Mr. Planche once more takes a fairy tale in hand ;
but dresses, scenery, and music, always his strong
points, have in his later pieces been thought of more
than the pointed dialogue of his earlier burlesques.
We shall be glad to see that Robson is fitted with a
good part. The illness of Mr. Wigan is perhaps a
sufficient, reason for our abstaining from pointing out
managerial errors here. At Sadler's Wells, of which
we have already spoken, there is a regular panto
mime, and its predecessors have been good. The
only theatre advertising in yesterday's Times that
it would give Shakespeare on Boxing-night was —out
of about a dozen—Astley's, where Macbeth, who
according to Duncan "rides well," has to show his
horsemanship.
This is a sort of conspectus of the Christmas
entertainments provided by the principal theatrical
managers. Our recurrence to the subject will
depend upon the merits of the productions.

SACRED HARMONIC SOCIETY.—The final Christmas
performance of The Messiah takes place at Exeter-
hall on Friday next, the 2nd of January. Clara No-
vello, Miss Dolby, Sims Reeves, and Mr. Thomas,
will be the principal vocalists.