The Sun.
London, England, 1852-04-13 00:00:00

HAYMARKET THEATRE.

The Easter novelty at this theatre is the joint pro-
duction, as we learn from the bill, of " two members
of the Amalgamated Society of Dramatic Engineers."
It bears the title of 0, Gemini ; or, the Brothers of
Co(u)rse, and is a burlesque on the melodrama of the
Corsican. Brothers, now playing with great success
at the Princess's and other theatres. There is but one
step, we are told, from the sublime to the ridiculous,
and in this instance, though the distance be a five
minutes' walk from Oxford-street,to the Haymarket,
we certainly think that a more complete transition
from one extreme to the other has seldom been wit-
nessed.
The plot and personages of the melodrama
have been preserved, but the travestier have so skill-
fully brought down the harrowing incidents and
spectral situations of the original into an every• day,
not to say burlesque, interest, that M. Dumas himself
would be puzzled to recognise his own progeny.
The weight of the piece falls on Mr. Buckstone, the
representative of the two "De Franchi's," who, we
need scarcely say, made the most of the points en-
trusted to him. In the first act, or rather the act
which is played first, we find him as the Corsican
country gentleman, using the " influence of his posi-
tion" to put an end to a Corsican vendetta, which
has existed between two families for the last 500
years, the original cause of which appears to have
been the laying of an egg at a neighbour's door by a,,
vagrant hen, and the subsequent strangling of the
progeny in the dispute as to its ownership. In the'
execution of this amiable office, he utters so many
vile puns, that even the litigants are compelled to
groan with horror. Next we see him, as in the ori-
ginal, under the influence of the sympathetic cord
which binds the brothers ; but in place of the vague,
undefined feelings of fear and foreboding, Mr. Buck-
stone is only affected by a violent fit of sneezing, from
which he infers that his brother Louis, at Paris, has
caught the prevailing epidemic, and directly after a
violent pain between the eyes, convinces him that his
brother has got into some row and received one for
his nob, ala mode de boxe. Then he sits down to in-
dite a letter to 'his brother, and we have the ghost
scene, in which an illuminated turnip lantern and a
sheet are substituted for the spectre of the murdered, and
the scene opening out displays the Parisian just floored
in a street row Outside the Grand Opera, and not able
to come up to time. In the next scene we are carried
off to Paris, and find Mr. Buckstone, as Fabian, in
the broad-breeched, narrow-waisted, and large-hatted
Frenchman of the Boulevards, in love with a pretty
modeste, Emile (Miss Col:ins), of the Rue St An-
toine, from whom, by way of striking up an acquain-
tance, he has purchased twenty " cheap summer
straws." The Chateau Renaud of the original is en-
acted by Mrs. L. S. Buckingham, who displays the
Parisian roué and dandy to the life, and by him Emile
is decoyed to the bat masque at the Grand Opera, where
we have Louis in an outrageous Roman toga, helmet,
and nose; and then follows the encounter, where in-
stead of being run through, he meets with the
more satisfactory, though less dignified, misfortune
of being polished off with a " black eye."
In the next scene Fabian arrives in Paris, " regard-
less of expense," by an express train, seeking revenge
for the said "black eye," of which we have seen him
informed by the mysterious electric telegraph. The
duel then follows, first with single sticks and then
with fists, when Chateau Renaud being vanquished
and polished off in his turn, the family honour is
avenged, and we are carried off to the Grand Opera,
where, still as the representative of the two brothers,
Mr. Buckstone exhibits to us a solution of the " two
single gentlemen rolled into one" problem, and after
singing a song in front as the Corsican, jumps round,
and discovers the Parisian brother fastened on be-
hind. The subject is a difficult one to burlesque, at
least while following the original so closely as has
been done in this instance, and we are bound to say,
that however creditably and cleverly the travestie
has been carried out, the piece of itself pos-
sesses too few points of wit and humour
to have succeeded on its own merits.
The dialogue is extremely flat in parts, and we looked
in vain for any of the smart hits which we bad ex-
pected from the opportunities which the piece itself
affords, and which the acknowledged talents of the
authors could have well supplied. We might almost
fancy that the censorship had been busy at work, for
with one exception there is not a political allusion in
the whole piece, and the only fun attempted in the
dialogue was a series of plays upon words, such as we
had fancied had been long ago consigned to the tomb
of all the Millars. Mr. Buckstone 's vivacity, how-
ever, made the most of what there was, and his skilful
imitations of Mr. Charles Kean, the original repre-
sentative of the Brothers in this country, and the
admirable manner in which he seized upon and
burlesqued the little peculiarities of that
gentleman's acting in the part, were a real
treat, 'and contributed very much to the
success of the piece, Mr. James Bland had also a
double part to play, and 'acted with his usual spirit.
The piece throughout is admirably put upon the stage,
the scenery is excellent, and the scenic effects ex-
ceedingly well managed. The bat masque scenes
were given with great fidelity, and so real did the
racket, the glitter, and the continual bustle of the
masqueraders on the ' stage appear, that we could
almostiee
ehave fancied ourselves spectators at the Grand
Opera. The dresses, too, were very tasteful, and it
iis ev dent that no expense has been spared to place
ttie on the with full effect. On the whole,
thou-v. ,
e, by no means the best burlesque which we
have Been at this theatre, we'have no doubt that 0,
w
Gem'7" • • •
ill meet with a pretty fair share of success.

At this ADELPIIIpopi THEATRE.
menta opened
escribead
zhplace of entertainment the amuse-
the Market, d
effects," with the additional new drama called the Queen of
the bill as full of " Adelphi
in the
attraction that the prin-
cipal Mrs. Keeley,
character was intrusted
her first appearance at this thtee
piece, which is French t(hmroru.agtirio.uiti being
may be briefly
The plot of the
told. Maurice Durand
life (Mrs.
v lif:°11 es)) of un-
known parentage, marries
Keeley), daughter of Leonardinearl
,I3rionne, Syndic of
wateroarriers of Paris. To better hi. . the
to St. Domingo, where he
remp.osttion, be
proceeds . remains for five
years, leaving his wife and child with her parents.
the Count de Salnalle.
During his absence , a wealthy
11 is killed by '
nobleman (Mr. Worre ),.
the fall of
beam from a burning house,leaving a will in which a
to an only son, whos he
bequeaths his title and fortunet
..s,,am_. The
nature of
istence was wholly unknown obi
.I
.ily
to a villain named Lorrain
this will becoming known
to purloin it, and,
(Mr. 0. Smith), he contrives .
f es into the
Domingo,
in us
making his way to St.
mind of Maurice Durand the belief that he is the son
and heir of the deceased Count, and ultimately suc-
ceeds in putting him in possession of the inheritance,
under the promise of a munificent rewardi•
To effect
.
i
this the usual amount of forgeries and vin anes of
every kind are practised by him, and in due time the
new Count enters Paris in grand style, but is seen
and recognized by his wife, who, by industry and
perseverance, has gained the position of fruit and
flower merchant to the King, and is recognized as
" Queen of the Market." The usurping Count,
though innocent of the forgeries that have been
Committed, finds himself so mixed up with the pro-
ceedings of his agent, Lorrain, that he becomes
the virtual slave of the latter, who, to serve his
own pecuniary purposes, insists upon his renouncing
his wile, the bumble flower woman, and marrying A

LONDON,'

! lady of rank and opulence. -At this point the deep
interest of tha drama commences. The so-called
Count, fearful of the galleys on the one hand ,and re-
taining all his aid' •affeetion . for his wife on
the other, is—subjected to a Severe mental
struggle---tit"iine titne;._clenying' all knowledge
of his wife.," and at another resolved at all
hazards to-do-her--her justice.-- Ire the meantime she is
made the object of persecution, and,-through the in-
strumentality of Lorrain' backed by the Duchess de
Cerny (Miss Emma Harding), an excellent specimen
of the old French noblesse,. is arrested by the officers
of the Bastile, with the view of frightening her into
a renunciation of her marriage. Some stir-
ring incidents occur, but at length the better
nature of the pseudo-Count prevails ; he acknow-
ledges Louise as his wife, and in the end is relieved
of all danger from the liw by the appearance of the
real son of the deceased Count de Salnalles, who for
years has been the friend of Louise and her parents,
and who, on discovering his birth and rank, freely
absolves Maurice Durand, who now returns to his
true position in life, from all blame. Such is the
main plot of the piece, but there are besides a variety
of telling and well-sustained incidents which throw
an attractive interest over the whole drams, and from
first to last the attention of the audience is never per-
mitted to flag. Mr. Paul Bedford. as Blaise Lefort,
Syndic of the Porters, is the source of no small
amusement throughout, from his grotesque mode of
courtship towards Louisa, whose husband he assumes,
from his long absence, to be dead ; and some of the
minor characters also are brought in with consider-
able effect, so as to lighten the play. The character
of the " Queen of the Market" was hit off with great
force and skill by Mrs. Keeley'', and the same compli-
ment might fairly,be. applied to all the leading actors.
The new farce of Who Stole the Pocketbook r and the
comic opera of Good Night, Signor Pantalon, fol-
lowed, and thus closed a series of- excellent Easter
en-
tertainments.

LYCEUM THEATRE.
An eight act piece, extending over the entire even-
ing, was the potent attraction at this elegant theatre.
La Dame de la Halle, the original drama, by M.
Annicet Bourgeois and a collaborateur, was in six
acts. The two additional acts added by tha Lyceum
adapters, Mr. Slingsby Lawrence and Mr. Charles
Mathews, seem intended. principally for the introduc-
tion of a shipwreck-scene, excellently managed—better,
indeed, than anything of the kind since the famous
shipwreck in Mr. Kemble's last revival of the Tem-
pest, at Covent-garden, As a medium for displaying
the entire resources of the Lyceum, both in regard to
company and scenic effect, it.,serves its purpose well.
Mr. Charles Mathew's was ii-scoundrel of the first
water, with a coolness, taw, and imperturbable effron-
tery ;that were..exquisite, and occasionally made the
audience roar in themidst of the gravest passages of
villany. Madame Vestris acted with fine pathos in the.
scene where the loss of the 200 louis d'ors is disco-
vered, and was efficiently seconded by the rough and
hearty earnestness of Mr. Frank Matthews, who
made the.most of the part of Pere Bonneau. Mr.
Roxby exhibited a great deal of vigour as Alcide le
Fort, and Mr. Suter was quietly humorous as
Brididi, the accepted lover of Javotte, which person-
age was played by Miss Julia St. George with
charming sprightliness and ease. Mrs. Frank Mat-
thews was as genial and natural as she always is in
Madelaine Richard, one of the chiefs of the
Halle,—
and Mrs. Macnamara's stiffness and dignity as the
Marchioness were thoroughly characteristic. Miss
Laura Keene made her first appearance at this theatre
in the character of Therese, and her Mitt must be
pronounced decidedly successful. There is a vast
deal of promise in this
.young lady, who only
wants more familiarity with the stage to be-
come an actress of more than common pretensions,
particularly in melodrama and domestic plays. She
has youth and everything in her favour. The other
characters call for. -r no special remark—except that
every one, including Mr. Belton, another debutante
(in the part of George Michel), did his very best,
whatever that might amount to, to secure a good en-
semble. -The saee'ry . brought
rcout the admirable
talent of Mr. Beverley in a new light, and showed
him as happy in the treatment of real as of fiery
subjects. The. moonlight scene of the Market of the
Innocents was a masterpiece of picturesque design.
One of the most striking effects we have ever wit-
nessed on the stage was the shipwreck on the rocks
of St. Domingo ;/ the reality was most appalling.
The ballet was appropriate, and the dancing of
Miss Rosina Wright extremely animated. One of the
dances, entitled La Fricassee, by a troupe of pois-
sardes, was quaint and spirited, and elicited an
uproarious encore. Mr. Tully has been very suc-
cessful in the music, and introduced more than one
pretty song. The fall of the curtain was the signal
for an unanimous recall for Mr. and Mrs. Charles
Mathews—then for 'Miss Laura Keene—and, lastly,
for the author ; in response to which Mr. C. Mathews
came forward and candidly owned that the piece was
an adaptation from the French, by himself and
another gentleman (named above). The Chain of
Events adds another to the chain of Lyceum suc-
cesses.