The Sun.
London, England, 1854-12-27 00:00:00

SADLER'S WELLS.

:9 ,

The piece specially in honour of Ch:ie tmas was the
pantomime of Ilarleviin, Ali Baba tvtd the Forty
Thieves ; or, Morgiana. Ia the introd ,uictory part the
demons Gloom, Care, Dulness, and t le; pondenoy are
appropriately dispelled by the want of tirougement. Pic-
torial illustrations of the Arabian Ni gillts pass before
the spectacle, and these are followed by •nn extravaganza
representation of the tale which forms the title cf the
whole, including sufficient fun and fre•liA3 to pass for a
pantomime of itself. When the famous: forty have been
extinguished with their leader, a `sransforunation is
effected in the " realms of fancy," w ttich presents the
following cAst of characters ;—" lequin, Mr. C.
Fenton ; Columbine, Madlle. Natl ahe ; Pantaloon,
Mr. Naylor ; Sprites, Masters Willi: in I, Nicholas, and
Alexander Deulin ; Clown, Mr. Ni oc,lo Deulin. The
tricks and hits generally were at lea: ;t of an average ee-
gree of merit, and, with one or two e• mt ptioos, the whole
performance wsnt off well, the 9); bus playing a con-
spicuous part with their tumbling. The attendance was
as large as the capacity of the by filling would allow,
and, =save the little customary ini krludes before men-
tioned, the audience was extremel; f good-humoured.

Walbourn and Mr. Tanneri, Clowns ; and Miss Maria
ine. From this point the pantrrnime

a.. Q-e etas?, th,i trio'

being tolentbly nu

cry well for a fir,,t night, the gez.eral
Lust.ie ou the 2tr,ge being well maintained.

CITY OF LONDON.

"Boxing night" still continues to be a night of in-
tense excitement with the East enders. Froman early
hour in the evening the doors of the theatres are be-
sieged, and the "City," under the able management of
Messrs. Johnson and Nelson Lee, having long main-
tained its celebrity for pantomime, comes in for a large
share of patronage. The pantomime of this season is
entitled Natural History; Dr, Harlequin Birds, Beasts,
and Fishes, of which it is needless to say Mr. Nelson
Lee is the author. The first scene is placed amongst
the Signs of the Zodiac, where a number of birds,
beasts, and fishes are assembled. Dame Nature ar-
rives, and afterwards the Fairy Truth, who informs
them that Surly Bear is working under water to
obtain the hand of the daughter of Old Cock Sal-
mon. Goldfish explains the treachery of the Bear,
and begs the aid of Nature and Truth to defeat his de-
sign. The Fairy tells him that Goldfinch, the Prince of
Fairyland, has resolved to assist their cause, and has
despatched King Lion and his friend, the French Eagle,
to punisk the Bear. The assembly breaks up, and the
scene changes to Feather Island, the Paradise of Fairy-
land where we have a fairy dance, a feast of flowers, and
other festive amusements. The prince here announces
his intention of aiding Truth and Nature against the
Bear. The scene then changes to the Grand Marine
Palace of King Lion. Jackal], the Lion's provider,
arrives with a tray of shins of beef, and the Young
Tiger is sent for Jackass, the village barber, to shave
his Majesty. The young prince arrives, attended by
his troop of lion guards, and his Majesty King Lion and
his staff of English and French officers enter. The
guards receive him with a loyal roar ; intelligence is
now brought from Fairyland informing the King of the
hostile intentions of the Bear. His Majesty orders the
city to be besieged, and departs to slaughter a fat bear.
' This brings us to the Crystallised Grot of Old Cock Sal-
mon, beneath the waters. Troutina, daughter of Old
Cock Salmon, enters terribly distressed, owing to the
persecution of the Bear, who follows her about, wanting
to hug her. Her father resolves to send her off to a dis-
tant trout stream that night. She departs with her
papa to make preparations for her journey, when the
Bear pops in and discloses his intention of seizing Trou-
tina and clapping his paw upon her father's land. On
Troutina's return the Bear springs on her, and is about
to carry her off, when the British Lion, accompanied
by theFrenchEagle, suddenly stopshim. Abombardment
by the fleet at the back causes an explosion and a break,
which brings to view the Bower of Sparkling Gems in the
Palace of Prince Goldfinch, who changes the characters.
The young Prince (Mr. A. F. Forest) becomes Harle-
quin, Troutina (Miss Emma Sanger) Columbine, Old
Cock Salmon (Mr. R. Lees) Pantaloon, and the Clowns
are Mr. R. Stilt and our old friend Paul Herring. The
Pantomime of this season may fairly be said to be one
of Mr. Nelson Lee's best productions, and nothing has
been omitted—scenery and machinery—to give effect to
the performance. The house was crowded, and the
morning performance was equally well attended.