The Sun.
London, England, 1847-05-28 00:00:00

HER MAJESTY'S THEATRE.
Donnizetti's comic opera, La Figlict del Regiment°
(better known as La fille du Regiment), was
produced
here last evening with the following cast:—
Maria Mdlle. Jenny Lind.
La Marchese di Berkenfield Madame Solari.
Tonio Sig. Gardoni.
Sulpizio (a sergeant) Sig. F. Lab'ache.
Te following is the " argument " of the opera, ?'5
prefixed to the libretto :—The scene of the action is is
the Tyrol, during the occupation of that country by the
French. Tte heroine is Maria a Vivandiere, a Pal
girl, the daughter of the 11th Regiment of the Grand
Army of Napoleon. She has become the adopted chiw
of the regiment, because Sulpizio, a sergeaat of that el°
• cellent corps, found her after a battle, and with her 0
'e letter from her father, a captain. The letter was
dressed to a Marchioness of Berkenfield. The gvw
sergeant kept the letter carefully, and the gallant r:
giment adopted the child, who, from a little Orb rl
grown up into a sprightly young woman—a suttler
full of spirit and enterpri.e, who marches and drinks vi",_
her collective father—that is to say, the whole reginol;
In the Tyrol she meets with a young peasant'
saves her life when she is on the point of falling 11..,,
a precipice, and then becomes in love with the vivan
—a love which she returns from gratitude, and fr4c
other reasons still more potent. Tonio, the rung di;
roh•se, follows the reiment in all its movements, °hoe
spite of every obstacle, and even the threat that t
will hang him as a spy does not deter him; on the c(!i's,
trary, he ventures even to make bold to ask of the father
the hand of his daughter. The regiment, true to its
paternal character, assembles and holds a council on
important subject, of which the result is, they will e 9.13,.
sent to the match on the condition that Tonio will eau";
into the regiment. Tonio at once aecepts the conditio
and becomes a soldier in the hope of being um r.
Maria. But in this conjecture he experiences a new or
stacle in the person of the Marchioness de Berkenfie
rano%On hearing her name, Sulpizio (the sergeant)
hers the letter addressed to her be found at the sal!,
time as Maria; he gives it to the Marchioness. and 5,,f
recognises the suttler girl as her niece, the offspring u
the secret marriage of her sister with the French raft;
tain. The haughty lady claims her niece, Maria /00
order to have an education given her worthy her elsc-- to
in society. The 11th Regiment is obliged to abdi.ae,
made
h she has
owht.
ands
see
act
ces
ntapocoru Marianfirco renounced
diis
hfs seen
its paternity, and to return Maria to her real relatger:
Maria is forced to leave her military itiape
mfilahnneaaldsntdhneel risis ceo
f a suttler girl. She is obliged eCas
t lt
eo
°;f:hf: it;
bearing and accomplishments of a you/glad,' 01. ~-„r the
shejoyous
is t
songsau g h t
andto
rrdeeast dance cmheeears
unconstrainednftdohrtemom sing,e: d
Tonio,du
costume
osasewttrutitilmhne deserting veryaton d thecisear
ontithes 01;
vsetre,}n.
it le contrary, Maria is much annoyed by her stilteciso4
efer e; qsuheen trlevg anbucet it is
tnbooloseenib-ro-
doc!
of the proud Marchioness. Hertfrore'getrhdeeotalfgorarenhaaterhap4aablisi°::*ces;
of life, and still more for Tonio, is preying °Prattle
mind, when all at once the sounds of drums en" -hge
pets are heard approaching the castle. These Or o,
sounds announce the approach of the 11th ItePaillbesti
which takes possession of the castle, having for .I',_ to
a no less interesting person than Tonio, who, 0055
his gallant conduct, has become a field officer, A Ec- be'
and most joyous recognition of course takes Plaelltsfy
tween Maria and her lover, who now possessing 01',ge
rank, asks of the aristocratic aunt that hand in IDs the
which he obtained before from her father with 0
bayonet. The Marchioness rejects the offer, having P„f
mised the hand of her neice to the son of a ducbess' 001,
neighbour. Tonio then determines on carryinF herif.
to which Maria consents, indiant at her aunt s cro I'4
To prevent this, by establishing
the Marchioness reveals that Maria is, in truth,.he
daughter—a fact which she had withheld to conceal
marriage she had formed so much beneath her r'.se;
Maria, who had refused to obey her aunt, cannot re_ti'ab
consent to the will of her new-found mother; and, si!",;(1
in utter despair, consents to marry the youngDakeins:ior,
claim on her feelitl,Se:r
of Tonio. But this proof of devotion awakens tthe nest,
want feelings of a mother in the heart of the Mare :trio,.
and she consents at last to the union of Tonio and
The character of the Vivandiere has, on the continfes;
been ever considered as one of the most popniar °been,
characters of Jenny Lind, and most justly has sand
so considered. Wonderful as she is in Alice
gremi,
the
Amina, she is equally wonderful, equally
Maria. This alone would prove her to be otr
greatest art.stes that ever lived. In characters in which
pathos alone is to be exhibited, in characters in 1"' _0
humour alone is to be exhibited,
difficult for an artist to be great. There is one unit?,
terrupted current of feeling running through the who',
it is perhaps not
.5.
drama—similar in kind albeit vaing in intensity7and
wle.n once the genius is "screwedup" to the particular
passion all goes on smoothly, but in such characters sthe Vivandiere, in which simplicity and archness, pathos,
and fun are blended together, it is most difficult to gir
in perfection may be truly said to have achieved
to each its due proportion, and that artiste who does thl:
triumph—and such a triumph did Jenny Lind achieve_
last evening. She is as great to the full in comedy. 5!
she is in tragedy, and commands the tears or the smile'
of her audience at will. She makes her appearance ill
the second scene, and enters dressed in her Vivandiere
costume, singing an air in honour of her regiment; the
ee
guerrier—E suon del tamburo mio solo pincer," which
she followed by a lively duet, " lo vidi la ince sal call:lrk
efficientlys h(s sung with F.
oLutabtlhaechoop(ewra), (who
andsupported
wscene
h her fl
sui
with true military spirit and gusto. The Ic
ends she g*ta
the "Plan Plan liatamplan" march, which she misrc7;4
acted, and sang admirably. Tonle is then brought ie
as a spy, and a change comes over her. They boo
to execute him, and the are
merry Vivandiere
comes ail earnestness, as she asks if he shall die who
and all is joy, a
saved her life? His life is spared -
°
Maria sings the favourite song of her comrades," Ow
can lo dice—ciascun lo sa," a song composed in honour of
the
regiment, and which ends with a refrain in which
all join,

"Egli e la,
Ecco l'undecimo c'egual non ha."
Her acting here was full of spirit. Well might the
regiment be proud of such a Vivandiere. The chortled
too, was admirable ; their making up was superb, ell.
they were excellently drilled, speaking not only, In
musical sense, but in a military sense also; it elicLi:
shouts of enthusiastic applause. The scene in w
Tonio declares his love was excellently given. "
do not believe it—listen, then, decide," exclaims
Nothing can exceed the dry humour, the espiegk ache
ness with which, assuming an air of mock dignity,
replies,

"Vidiam udiam
Ascoltiam e guidichiam."
We will see—we will hear—we will consider-
will judge.) The scene ends with an exquisite due,
(the gem of the first act); " A confession si ardente,
which was deliciously given by Jenny Lind and Gera
sensesdn i, andof in
throwingwhichtheher v marvellousoiae iaeucttofteo.sdrp: osTaftwranhoenderme
aewtphahepnevi i which hrijas. sgehpaaai again
P t
repetitiont°: t
creasing its force like the swell of an organ, 041;
dngecganiclleoieiffnmidi ratdhees, scaesneshein
iswh.ii:a
conclusiono ft
h exhibited
e duet
lasted with
was m
loudly
l
to become the
ost the house. b
yphatcrhmtess em.
fromar
was beautifully pathetic—pathetic from lady of fortune,
city—the perfection of acting, b its very sinaPll.
effort at acting—and here the because there was n°
voice was made more manifest astonishing power of her
any scene in which she has
The love of Donizetti for nyet appeared in this conntrY•
ac-
companiments is well known,oisy choruses and noisy ac"
of indulging that and here he had an oppor-
tunityfail to avail himself ; b propensity, opensity, of which he did not
above the multitudinous voices
of the chortis—above uth
horns, braying
of trumpets and
and the growling oe' bassoons and opherolides--;
above "the spirit-stirring drum,
was heard the clear, rich, lum, the ear-piercing file,
lull, soft, yet powerful voice of
Jenny Lind, and this not only withoutabsol screaming, but
Mutely without any apparent effort
or exertion. It
is needless to add that she called for at the conclu-
sion of the first act. The second is very sheet, but very
excellent. %% e find our merry Vivandiere living in the
chateau of the Marchioness, who is in vain endeavour*
ing to transform her into a fine lady, so as to make her a
suitable wife for the Duke of Krakenthorp. Her only
solace is an occasional chat with Sulpizio on the glories
of the regiment. The Marchioness has determined that
Maria shall make a grand musical display, and has
chosen an old romance, the music of which is by the
Her
c biohneerascstoimini
Maestro Caffariello. Dressed en grande dame she enters
and meet., Sulpizio, to whom she confides her sorrow. "She
wants me to sing before all the grand people to-night,"
says Maria, " I know not what piece of antiquity that
she has chosen from her hoards of old trash. "Ma to
vedrai," she adds, with the most fascinating archness,
" non ne faremo niente" (You shall see we will do
nothing of the sort). The Marchioness enters with
this exquisite romance in her hand, she seats herself at
the piano, and handing the music to Maria, orders her
to commence. Maria commences the romance, accom-
panied by the Duchess, on the pianoforte ; while she 15
singing Sulpizio approaches her, and whispering to her
the old refrain Rantanplan, she strikes up immediately
the favourite air of the regiment, and marching about,
to the great horror of the Marchioness, in 01
praises of the regiment—" Eco l'undechno ch' eget"
non ha." The Marchioness, in a tone of offended
dignity, remonstrates with her, and Maria, iediggr! at
the attempts made to instruct her in the art of singing
" fine," commences a regular sol-fa exercise, in which
she introduces all sorts of roulades and shakes, to the
astonishment of the Marchioness and the delight of the
audience, and at length dashing her music-book on the
ground in a fit of passion, leaves the room. The acting in
this scene was one of the richest pieces of comedy we have
ever seen, she excited a perfectfu? ore • At the conclusion the
audience was so enthusiastic in their applause that they
would not be satisfied until Jenny Lind had come for-
ward twice to acknowledge the compliments paid to her.
Equally great was she in the next scene, " Deciso e
dueque,' in which, in tones of extreme pathos, she la-
ments the hard fate which has condemned her to
be a fine lady, and to leave her dear fathers,
the regiment. Suddenly she hears military musio ill,
the distance. " Oh! transperto! oh! doloe ebrezza•
It is the old 11th. She is a Vivandiare again, and,
bursting out with the old military air "Evviva la
Patria," she finds herself once again in the midst dho of
old comrades. Her transition in this scene from grif
to exuberant joy was one of the finest pieces of acting
ever seen, and her accuracy in taking up the sudden
change in the character of the music at the same tins°
eas a marvel of facility. A trio, "Stretti insiem,"follows,
It is a rattling, rapid affair, and was given with immense
sprit by Jenny Lind, F. Lablache, and Gardoni, said
told most effectively. The finale, "Dolce Tesoro, wag
eeautilully given; nothing could exceed the grace and
the precision, and the luxuriance of her fioriture in this
finale. At the fall of the curtain she was called for
three times, and bouquets a foison were thrown upon the
d -
stage, Gardoni was in admirable voice, and sang sti