The Sun.
London, England, 1863-07-29 00:00:00

ROYAL ITALIAN OPERA,

LA FIGLIA DEL REGGIMENTO.

Madlle. Patti put the seal to the successes of the
season by her performance, last evening, of the
delightful vivandiere Maria, which must henceforth
be numbered among her most distinctive characters.
Whilst she wants the buoyant and piquant force;.of
Madlle. Picoolomini, the most perfect representative
which this comic heroine has yet obtainedl and
whilst she shares only with Madlle. Artot thepecn-
liar refinement she exhibits, her performance is
infinitely superior to that of Jenny Lind, and for this
sufficient reason, that Madlle. Paai is a'neat actress,
an,; Jenny Lind was not. Like Madlle. Artot, our
uncqu.,lled favourite rather idealises the Daughter
of the IteOment than presents her as a great reality
—making her the idol of her gallant guardians
rather than their actual companion ; and this ver-
sion, however pleasing, we think much more in
accordance with a refined taste than a just
perception. It is a drawing-room view of
Maria, which we confess wa cannot prefer to that
of the girl of the open air. Is success, however,
wag indisputable, and not less the attractive man-
ner in which she delivered her two great arias—
the spirited "Ciascun lo dice," that was very ardently
encored, end the pathetic " Convien partir"—in
which Maria bids adieu to her companions, and
which she distinguish, d, on the other hand, by a
most touching depth of feeling. In the lesson
scene, of course, she was peculiarly at home, and
lost no opportunity to display the florid marvels of
which she is such a mistress.
Madlie. Patti was well supported by Signor
Ciampi in Sulpizio, who sang and played with
more than his usu nature, us well as spirit—
Signor Baraldi, in Tonio, whose singing was irre•
ploachable—and Madame Tagliafico in the Coun-
tess, which was a very agreeable effort. The band
and chorus, as usual, stand in no need of our
praises. •

PRINCESS'S THEATRE.

MR. WALTER MONTGOMERY.

This gentleman assumed last evening the arduous
character of Hamlet, and very considerably en-
larged his pr.vions favourable impressions. If we
were forced to think his Othello was not sufficiently
inspired by passion, the same def'et was to be de-
tected in his present impersonatio I—but, of course,
rendered by its different medium—infinitely less
imperious. To Othello, passion is truth—want-
ing that he is no reality, but the double-
sided Hamlet—whoo,qually compounded of thought
and feeling, so marvellously reflects the human
mind, allows an actor great scope on one side, who
might be wholly wanting on the other. Accord-
ingly the Hamlet of Mr. Montgomery, if not dis-
tinguished by its emotional, may claim no ordinary
credit for its reflective characteristics. If not suffi-
ciently electrical, it is full of thought and judg-
ment, exhibiting the evidence of a very close
and careful study of the poet, and in the present
state of our stage is entitled to be accepted as a
sound SAakesperian contrlbution.

Mr. Montgomery's best scenes were those with
Ophelia and the Queen, i❑ both of which he rose to
expressions of great vigour; the reference to
Polonius in the first, espechlly, striking us to be
new as well as impressive, whilst his climax to the
play scene had a most adequate intensity. We
could refer also to a variety of points in the per-
formance which were ingenious, if not correct. Oa
the whole, this was an achievement that entirely
justified the impression it produced upon the audi-
ence, who were frequently aroused by it to great
applause, and who further evinced their feeling by
calling for Mr. Montgomery at the close of each of
the acts. We have only to add that he was very
worthily supported by Mr. Marston in the Ghost,
the very best that we remember, by Mr. C. Verner
in the King, and by Mr. Belmore in the Grave•
digger.