The Express.
London, England, 1857-12-26 00:00:00

STRAND.

This theatre, following the example of the
Lyceum, produced Its pontorairso on Christmu-era Hort,.

• , .
pin Novelty, aid the Prison who loaf her heart, is as
title of what Kr. LAWNS," Bridogbam, the author, de
slignatee "an original burlesque pantomime." That it pa.
SIMS some feature ot originality is tumnestionable, for it le
• pantomime with • morel, in which the chief pantomime
character talks sontlinent, exposes, in jingling rhymes, the
tricks et trade, together with the more reprehensible 'windbag
of joint stock conmenk., and denounces the follies sod
sicced the ego generally, In many " wise saws and modem
instances." There le an introductoryact, in which the bard-
the-curtain eta at the theatre are introduced; and eons
of the difikoldes of managership without means illustrated
Then we have • barleupes wherein • model Chinese emperor,
one Too-she-bi-srf, le first made happy by a daughter, end
then made miserable by the abstraction of her heart, which I
ersehirroles fairy purloins; it to presumed merely to that
how perfectly well humanity, especially the female part of it,
may got on without that superfluous appendage. And "fist
these comes the harlequinade, where the recovery of the lat
besot is the task which, performed, is to entitle " lads.
gain Novelty" to the pceesssion of both it sad its ease. la
the burlesque act there is some pretty scenery, and in a elies
loges, mire with bed puns, the motel and phyoical sew
eerily of Englishmen over Rtusisita, nigger', and Yeakeic
dliburers. Moroces, end all other foreigners, is impend
upon the audience set IS4I4IIIWW, to be somewhat

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unceremoniously contradicted by the etymons ef
jobitutock bank swindles and limited liability humbugs, got
up for the purpose of cheating the =wiry, which en po•
minently brought forward in act or part thethird. The dela.
of what Le usually the merriest part of s pantomime moil
be insufferable but that the monotony is relieved by the az-
, trsordinary Fedor mantes of • 6-foot individual, under
the =Merlons nuts of the Red Man of Agar (Query
Oust ?) tutors his wiry body and limbs about in a man-
ner which would lead to the supposition that he is only di►
toady related to the germ hoesu ; an mewing ballet in sexes
by • family of juveniles (the Lamberts), and some very good
dewing by Male. Dean, and mss or two decently ring
parodies by Miss Craven, who takes the put of Novelty in
the Introduction and Burlesque, and Novelty lisrlequin is
the pantomimic part. The actors could scarcely be
laid to be well up in their parts ; and several hitches
in sesoeshilling confirmed the idea that It was rather a
reheeresl than • performance that we were witnessing. The
audience, however, exhibited considerable patience, and it
mu only when a complete failure of the .• set " of the leat
moans occurred that there was the slightest symptom cl
dieronteet. But the author appeared even more annoyed
than the audience, for he rushed upon the stage and de-
nounced actors, soasseldfters, and everybody who bad any.
thing to do with this first night's representation. The
eassternation which resulted from this unrehasned some
Effected manager and actors to so great • degree that the
lost plea set down in the bill—Us., the furs of Mr. cod
Nra WAire--was omitted, much to the annoyance of the
gallery part of the audience, who, probably influenced by
the morel principle inculcated by the author of the panto-
mime, loudly demanded the return of the entire admission
racasy.

dial time, daily filled with, of the howc4 wild Suet that
wee devouring (sad yet puma by) children. This
Wild Dust wee happily tutroducad into the pato-
sink roweled by boy., lad on by a Fnechosan.
At last the Beast made Ms nruany, and ma scram the nags
with the poor Preaches= in We swath, to the gnat joy of
the pit, ton, sod pia:" The "omits basher" was now
latrodooed ia real unmet, sad by the aid of the " good
Ng," the" tricks and traps, elides and slaps, chap sad
aware" tune before u in quick euccusion.
Psawatimus WWI after wards subjected to much improve-
ment tom the hands of Farley and Barryteors, who ruled

We ibeethidse of the two mg rival hossia—Covent Gerdes
end Dairy Less, Mother Geese may be nr•tiooed, per-
haps, as the mast esseessful of onr modern Christmas pieces
Mr. T. Dlbdls woe lie author: hie maseeeript was Healed
• 111111MMIlft 10103•• prior to its wpresserterios at Coated
Cierdes, Is 1006. With some intimations it had a ran of
111 sights, sad i. rid to have put somet►in` like 20,0001.
Into the pocket. of die managers. That true son of Motu•,
• appeared in it es the Clown. " Rot Codliee" •ee
asap for ths first tiros by Grimaldi, at Sadism' Wells, e•
Easter Woodsy, April 11, 1019.

Harlequin is, without a doubt, • remnant of the Laths
relines; sad In the Italian theatre has pasted through all
the vicisoltudes of ketone. He wee arighially ',presented as
a ►nd of booby—the butt of the puformance, and hie me-
tier is described by 001401 it OS .‘ that of a poor devil who
has picked up pieces of stuff, of &Menet colours to patch his
drain" Under Goldoni he became en eatablishof wit.
The French then adopted his, until Rich with great
ingenuity gruel out a Harlequin entirely his own, render-
fag words seedless to describe his Minima or meaning. The
motley hero was then always the fortunate lover, and
did nothing bat run away with his mietrass, and gr.e
dga•le with Ida magical woolen sword (which is
supposed to ham some relation to the dagger or lath of the
FM, In the old Moralities), to direct the mew to shift the
mesas ban one form to another By degree., Harlequin
meowed his present polities in our pantomimes; and the
old styled loom locket sad trousers was improved by the
Mt/eduction of the prevailing tight suit with variegated
patches and wissigke.
Clown Is evidently from the Melina Brigheila or Bean-
imenok, who represented parte of Intrigue, deceit, end
knavery: anise wee a species of livery. The character
descended bas from the Frock Pinot, who Irm equipped
`white dogleg robe, which Grimaldi ahead by the addition
of rod spots, and Martinis( the lowa prosses. It la con-
jectured that his painted face and wide me* in taken from
the sadist maks.

Pisteboa is mho of Voiotia okra, sad Wives his
tron the drawers fanisely vas, Web, with the
rod Wangs sad Alma, we the hoiden s the
tot Jabot:Maw of the Adele* imam Is the Italian
eceetdies b repreeented the Whin and oast parte where
desks we wont.

Colmabble was krumly the a. St b lb. Italian
imillainve the casposked Harlaittia.