The Sun.
London, England, 1863-05-26 00:00:00

ROYAL ITALIAN OPERA.

LE PROPHETE.

This 3 ll but masterpiece of Meyerbeer is now so thoroughly
establiel ted as one of the great attractions of this theatre, on
the tea re of a completeness of rendering which it probably
cvuld rw ceive at no other house in Europe, that its repro-
duction. is always looked forward to as one of the chief
treats cif the year, and a tribute equally due to manage•
ment, 1 mb:ic, and composer. Little wonder, therefore, that
last ev( ming. its announcement ,served to a- satiable one of
the mo 5t briLliant audiences of the season, and that its per-
forman oe proved a source of the very highest gratification.

It is true we had to accept on this occasion the substi-
tution o; f Madlle. Didiee for Madlle. Csillag, in the charac-
ter of Fides, and we shall not pretend to disguise the
abatement in the power of the performance which this
change necessarily occasioned Madlle. Didiee is among
the most various and engaging of our London favourites—
a sound musician, a thorough artist, and a singer possessed
of a most .agreeable and expressive voice, but she has neither
the tragic genius nor the physical power which are de-
manded by the sorrowing Fides, and which unite in so
striking a manner is the claims of Madlle. Csillag. In ad-
dition to this, Madlle. Didiee was so unwell on this occa-
sion that Mr. Harris was compelled to request the indul-
gence ,of the audience on her behalf before the
commencement of the third act, so that the public were
not perm itted to enjoy the fall extent of the compensation
which it is usually in her power to bestow. Nevertheless,
in the face of all deficiencies, and against the exactions of
all standards, her performance was stamped with a
merit which was universally acknowledged, and
which cannot fail to advance her position as one
of the most sterling members of the company. Her
" Figlio mio" was distinguished by its depth of pa-
thetic earnestness. Her "Pieta pieta," was equally
marked by its emphatic feeling, and the subsequent duet
with Bertha had every claim to the loud approval with
which it was rewarded.

The cast of the opera in other respects retained its old
and grand attractions. Signor Tamberlik was the John of
Leyden, and the very finest, need we add, that the Lyric
stage of Europe possesses. His voice was in superb order,
and he has rarely exerted with more success all those
qualities which so nobly denote him, than on the occasion
of last evening. His " Impero piu soave" was again an
instance of that intense feeling which he can so well
unite with his tragic vigour ; and so also was his
"Madre addio," which terminated the first pet amidst loud
and general demonstrations. Of an opposite and equally
successful character was his "Del Ciel lo sguardo, at the
conclusion of the second act, which led to his summons be-
fore the curtain by all parts of the house. The remainder
of the performance we can only refer to in our old and
general terms of praise. Madlle. Dottini was the Bertha,
Signor Tagliafico the D'Oberthal, and Signors Baraldi and
Polonini, with Herr Zelger, the Anabaptists, and the exer-
tions of each must be acknowledged as most meritorious.
Of the delivery of the magnificent choruses with which this
opera abounds no eulogy could be too great, nor is a less
tribute demanded by the superb performanoe of the band,
under the baton of Mr. Costa. The unrivalled mice en
scene, which so peculiarly distinguishes this great produc-
tion, of course remains in all its glory—its wonderful skat-
ing scene included—and the entire impression of the night,
was one that amply sustained the character of this first of
lyric theatres.

DRURY-L ANE THEATRE.

MADLLE. PICCOLOMONI.

The three performances for the benefit of Mr. Lumley,
which were originally advertised to be given at Her
Majesty's Theatre during the present month, but which for
reasons that we need not discuss were transferred to the
above house, were initiated last evening by a performance
of the " Traviata," in which the heroine was sustained by
its most distinguished representative. Mr. Lumley's claims
as a manager, during the 18 years the.t he directed our only
Italian opera, are sufficiently acknowledged to account for
the crowded and elegant appearance of the theatre last
night, which has rarely worn the look of fashion that it
presented on this occasion. Had such a cause, however,
been wanting, the re-appearance of Maine. Piccolomoni,
now the Marchioness Gaetani, and especially under the
well-known circumstances of her return, would have
been quite ettough we fancy to have ensured the result
attained. Most of our readers must be aware that she has
not only emerged from her retirement, but made the jour-
ney to London on purpose to evince her sympathy with the
manager who introduced her to the London public. As
much in a personal respect, therefore, as an artistic, she
was likely to obtain a hearty response to her generous en-
deavours and to be rewarded with the welcome which so
warmly and universally greeted her first appearance in

I the opera.
She soon, however, convinced her patrons that on artistio
grounds alone she was entitled to the reception which had
been so earnestly accorded to her. She never sang or acted
better than on this particular occasion. Whilst she showed
that her vocal power was not at all impaired, her histrionic
was manifested in all its old unrivalled excellence. Her
pleasant kindly face, it is true, and a little embonpoint of
person, somewhat detracted from the effect of the consump-
tive and remorseful Lost One, bet these were objections soon
forgotten in the passionate ardour of her acting, which won
her a loud recall at the conclusion of each act, and a still
more emphatic summon at the final descent of the curtain.
She enjoyed the able support of Signor Giuglini in Alfredo,
who was deservedly encored in the " I miei bollenti
spiriti," and also Signor Della Sedie in the elder Germont,
whose rendering of all his music, but more especially the
"Di Provenza," was graceful and tender to a degree.
Madlle. Ferraris also added her attractions to the lief, by
one of her most charming introductions, in the divertisse-
ment given in the ball-room.
At the conclusion of the opera, Mr. Lumley made his
appearance in answer to the summons of the entire house,
and bowed his acknowledgments with a very obvious
amount of emotion. On Friday next their Royal High-
nesses the Prince and Princess of Wales will honour the
third performance with their presence, when the entertain-
ments will consist of "La Figlia del Reggimento," and the
last act of the "Favorite," in which Madlle. Piccolomoni
will be supported by Signor Giuglini.

Upwards of 36,000 holiday folk visited the Cry-
stal Palace yesterday, partly attracted by the beauty of the
place, and partly by the round of amusements specially
provided for the occasion. Ample music was provided by
the company's band, the band of the Coldstream Guards,
and the great organ.
The Zoological Society's gardens in the Regent's-
park, always a favourite resort of the Londonfrs on their
national festival of Whit- Monday, were more than usually
crowded yesterday.
A MISERABLE VIGNETTE FROIII IHE DERBY
DAY—AS SKETCHED BY THE " SPECTATOR."—
There was one sorrowful creature who had dragged a barrow
load of ginger-beer all the way from London, having started
the previous day. Of course ginger-beer stood no chance in
such weather—a mouthful of snow would have been as
pleasant; and in the afternoon, when the races were over,
and the people were hurrying away, the poor woman sat on
her barrow quite alone, with her head buried in her hands,
and tears streaming through her thin fingers. She had
" not taken a penny," she said, and it was all she had
rneicilkeocledthueproonafd painfullyorweeks. dragging on through the deep We saw her afterwards about a
sticky mud, which came over her boots at every step. It
w„s one of the minor tragedies of the Derby, that forlorn
teing toiling back, disheartened and sad, to a starving
home.

A PROTEST AGATNST PUNNING.—Except when
it involves a witty thought, the play on words is
but the mark of a mind too feeble to lay hold habitually
with its entire attention on the thoughts of which words
are the signs, but accustomed to stop at the mere percep-
tion of their sound within the ear. It indicates the weak-
ness of an intellect so little attentive to sense that it is able
to spend what trifle of thought it connects with the use of
words on the jumping aside after any jingle that can be
dragged into false association with them. The social con-
tempt for the mere punster is not expressed as in playful
joke against a spoilt child of good humour; it is the well-
grounded and demonstrably just censure of a manner of
speech that signifies commonly a want of intellect. Where
a man of sound judment has teen like Sidney Smith also a
punster, his puns always sent home a witty thought and
were not a mere brainless playing upon words.—Examiner.
PLYMOUTH, Monday, 10 p.m.—(By Electric and
International Telegraph.)—The ship Owen Glendower,
Captain Norris, which left the Downs last Monday with
passengers for Auckland, has put into the Sound this
evening leaky.
EXETER HALL.—We are repeated by Mr. Mar-
tin to state that the performance of Handel's " Judas Mac-
cabala," by the National Choral Society, with Mr. Sims
Reeves, will commence at half-past seven on Thursday
evening, and not at eight o'clock as previously announced.
Several gentleman connected with the city are
engaged in an endeavour to procure a commemorative
statue of William Paterson, the founder of the Bank of
England,