The Sun.
London, England, 1864-11-24 00:00:00

NEW ROYALTY THEATRE.

It may very well be allowed this huge metropolis to have
one, and that the smallest theatre, where wisdom and in-
tellect are not too exacting, and where the gayest of per-
formers, the freshest of wits, and the lightest-hearted of
audiences may assemble and give animal spirits their full
swing, and even for a time banish the sombreness that seems
to shadow all Englishmen, more or less. All this is con-
mendable, especially where good taste and good feeling pre-
side, as they do at the theatre under the direction of the
Misses Pelham. By the spirit of the present manageresses,
the talent of Mr Burnand, and a sufficiency of capital to
put anything on the stage in excellent taste and splen-
did style, the little theatre has been redeemed from its long-
neglected state, and now shines as one of the brightest of
the minor stars that make up our theatrical constellation.
It has carved out an orbit for itself, and is undoubtedly the
gayest little theatre in the metropolis.
Having put aside the burlesque " Ixion," which has run
a hundred successive nights, a new one, by the same author,
has been produced, with a prospect of realising the same
extraordinary success. It is called " Snowdrop ; or, the
Seven Mannikins and the Magic Mirror," and is founded
upon one of the Brother Grimm's Scandinavian legends.
Of course there is a burlesque king, an injured princess, a
jealous queen, a lover for the injured princess, a villanous
courtier, and several foolish ones, and no end of fairies and
attendants of all kinds.

The story is of the smallest. Snowdrop is the daughter
of the King, and is hated by the Queen, her stepmother,
who hires bi avoes from the Victoria Theatre to slay her in
a sensation scene compiled from all the theatres, where the
mannikins attend upon her. She of course ultimately
triumphs, and the conclusion is brought about in a grand
spectacular scene. The dialogue is a continual sparkle of
verbal jokes, caught from the lightest sound, and we may
add, abounding in the smallest sense. The audiences, how-
ever, have now been educated to thoroughly appreciate this
kind of drollery, and they chuckle at any pun, however
remote, as much as if they had made it themselves; evi-
dently participating in the triumph, as if there were
merit in the discovery; which sometimes we must say
there is, the allusion being often so remote that it takes as
much wit to recognise as to make them.

There is much singing and dancing, many of the most
popular airs are well parodied, the dresses are splendid, the
scenery very pretty and picturesque, the actresses very
clever and joyous, and the actors humorous; therefore
there is no doubt that'` Snowdrop" will for some time con-
tinue to allure all who are in search of a bright hour or
two, unclouded by any serious purpose, and brilliant with
a flow of fine animal spirits regulated by good
taste. The principal actresses are Miss Clifford,
the Queen; Miss Pelham, her maid ; the Prince
Candid (Miss Maitland), Perky, her attendant (Miss
Harriet Pelham), Miss Nelly Burton, the Princess Snow-
drop; and Miss Rosina Wright lends her aid as King of
the Elves, dancing as buoyantly as ever. The broader
comedy is confided to Mr W. H. Stephens, as King; Mr
Hughes, as a Count in waiting, and Mr Joseph Robins, as
the Court barber. They all acted with great spirit, and
everything went as perfectly as if it had been the hundredth,
instead of the first night, There can be no doubt it will be
an extraordinary success. All the usual honours were done
to performers and author.

THE OXFORD MUSIC HALL,

ORPHEE AUX ENFERS.

Comic opera, if not destined actually to share possession
of the field with sentimental, is stoutly asserting its claim
to public attention in this country. Witness the brilliant
success of Offenbach" laughter-moving " Too many
Cooks" at the Gallery of Illustration ; witness the equally
successful production of the same composer, " Orpheo aux
Enters," at the Oxford. The vocal troupe in the latter
selection completely succeed in catching the spirit of the
mirthful music. The mythical libretto on which Offenbach
has strung his captivating strains reveals the love of Eury-
dice for Aristeus, the subsequent intercession of Orpheus
and concession by Jupiter, and the ultimate change of
Eurydice into a Bacchante. 01 course there must be a wide
difference between the opera sung and acted and simply
sung. But the young ladies upon the Oxford stage pre-
sent such a brilliant display of dress, that the costumes of
the stage are not much before them in attractiveness,
whilst so much dramatic life and fire are introduced into the
several songs and choruses that a great deal of the spirit
of the Parisian interpretation is preserved. A rich satiri-
cal vein prevades the music—many mock heroic pieces
being scattered over the opera. In the striking interpreta-
tion at the " Oxford," we are bound to particularise Mr
Greene, the basso, who, as Jupiter, (" doubling " Public
Opinion and " John Styx ") displays an amount of genuine
humour for which, of course, he had no scope in lugubrious
opera. He makes the mythica' deity quite Falstafflan in
his loving moments. The " Hymn to Bacchus" is very
secular in time and time, and Miss Russell dashes into an
air leading to the famous " Hilliho Chorus," which latter
may be very acceptable to Polh) mnia, but is more secular
than the hymn. The " Hilliho Chorus "is one of thegreat
successes of the opera. But it is in the couplets that the
vigour and humour of the composer show themselves, and
give scope to some excellent buffo-singing and acting. Ju-
piter is the centre of some vocal couplets addressed to him
by Minerva, Diana, Cupid, and Venus, (sung by
Misses Banjo, Tyrrell, Fit zlienry, and Walmsley.
It is in these couplets that Mr. Greene again
shines out. The air to which these couplets are set
is itself highly provocative of mirth and leads to a chorus
of " Ha, ha's," in which Mr Greene is the vocal ringleader.
He laughs with such immense unction that the audience as
well as the singers catch the infection of his mirth. The
whole of the music of the opera is most quaint. The
" Galop" had already found its way into our dance music,
and Mr Woodin had appropriated the air of "The King of
Beitotia" for his " Wail of the Waiter" in his last Poly-
graphic entertainment. It should be mentioned that the
pastoral song allotted to Aristeus, the Arcadian shepherd,
is efficiently given by Mr Lascelles. The encores on the
night we heard the selection were numerous, and Offen-
bach's delightful music will no doubt be heard for a long
time to come at the Oxford. Other operatic selections also
bring out the vocal strength and trained resources of the
company. The " Norma" selection has been revived, Miss
Russell, the soprano, being the Norma and Madame Maria,
the Adelgisa—a rich vocal treat being the result. Lo Petit
Blondon (the Crystal Palace star) is about terminating his
engagement at the Oxford, The comic element has been
recently reinforced by the clever D'Aubans, The " Cup of
cold .Plion" scene is almost tragic in its absurdity, and M.
D'Auban's Sailors Hornpipe is so brilliant and ornate (al-
most giving you the alphabet with the legs) that it is said
the director of the Porte Sc Martin Theatre is anxious to
secure the exhibition of this national dance for his Parisian
audiences,

PHILHARMONIC HALL —A miscellaneous morn-
ing performance was liberally given yesterday by the pro-
prietors of this hall (Messrs. Adams and Turnhaui) to the
children of the Licensed Victuallers' Asylum, and the
friends of that institution. The hall was crowded to excess,
and the entertainments were admirably suited for ajuvenile
audience. Professor Sylvester, patentee of the improved
ghost illusion, now adopted by Professor Pepper at the
Polytechnic, introduced an improvement of the fairy foun-
tain called " Minniehaha," or the laughing waters. Mr
Sylvester's alterations allow the introduction of living
figures in the centre of the coloured waters, but owing to an
accident with the pipes the fountain could only be partially
exhibited. There were, amongst many things, some ex-
cellent grotesque danci:g by Mr D'Auban, the best we
have seen since the death of Flexmore, a clever ventrilo-
quial scene with a figure by Mr Jester, and a brilliant solo
on the drum by Master Shapcott. The visitors, old and
young, wore delighted, and a large sum of money was eel.
• lectod for the benefit of the asylum and schools.
PROFCSED NEW INDIAN BISLIOPEIC.—Sir ChM •
Wood has informed the Archbishop of Canterbury and the
bishops that he has written to Sir John Lawrence, asking
his advice in reference to the proposed establishmnet of an
additional bishopric iu India, and that, in the event of Sir
John Lawrence thinking an additional bishopric necessary,
he will recommend to her Majesty the immediate establish-
ment of a now see.
DFATFI OF A ROMAN CATHOLIC BISHOP.—The
Most Rev. Dr MacNally, the Lord Bishop of Clogher, died
at his residence in Monaghan, on Monday, after a painful
and protracted illness, which had fully prepa;ed his flock
for the bereavement they have suffered. Few dignitaries of
the church have left behind them a memory associated with
so many noble works, so many generous deeds, an 6 so much.
paternal zeal as the deceased prelate, for whose loss the dm-

LATEST INTELLIGENCE.

(REUTER'S TELEGRAMS.)

ITALY.
TEE ITALIAN PARLIAMENT.
TURIN, Nov. 23 (Evening).

The Senatorial Committee, appointed to examine
the Bill for the transfer of the Capital, are favour•
able to that measure.

The Chamber of Deputies has adopted the Bill
for a reduction in the emoluments of public Pane.

tionaries.

SPAIN.
THE SPANISH ELECTIONS.
MADRID, Nov. 23 (Evening).
Five out of the six deputies who have been
elected in this city are adherents of the Ministry.
The number of persons voting in Madrid
was 1,953.