The Sun.
London, England, 1851-07-30 00:00:00

HER MAJESTY'S THEATRE.

Donizatti's pleasing opera Linda di Chamouni was
performed for the first time this season last evening,
Madlle. Sofie Cruvelli sustaining for the first time the
part of the heroine. The Linda of Madlle. Sofie Cruvelli
cannot but add greatly to her fame ; she is the most
earnest, the most impassioned, the most true to nature
of any of the Lindas who have yet appeared. She
completely emancipates herself from the cold
conventionalities with which Madame Persiani overlaid
the part, and which since then have become stage tradi-
tions, and gives us instead a true, natural, and feeling
version of the character. She is, indeed, the warm-
hearted, loving, trusting, and betrayed peasant-
girl, and by the intensity which she threw into
her representation of Linda, she not only
achieved a great triumph for herself, but she completely
redeemed the part from the reproach of insipidity,
which some hypercritics have brought against
it. The great scene was of course that of the
second act with Antonio; her rendering of this scene
was superb, there was something harrowing in the
manner in which she seemed at once to wither when
she heard articulated the curse of her father. She
created quite a furore, and at the conclusion
of the act was twice called on. Great as her acing was,
it was equalled by her singing. Her scene d'intrata,
the pretty and sparkling "Ah lute di quest_anitual"
was a perfect triumph of brilliant vocali-
sation, and the duet with Carlo, " A con-
solarmi," was deliciously rendered by Medic. Sofie
Cruvelti and Mr. Sims Reeves, who resumed hie old ,1
character of Carlo, and acted and sang admirably. The
part of Pierotto was sustained by Madlle. .111 see
Cruvelli, whose rich contralto tones told most effec-
tively. Coletti was full of intense,,eling as Antonio,
and ticapini made a very fair Prefetto, whilst F.
Lablache was the most quaint of buffo Marchesee.
At the conclusion of the opera Madlle. Sofie Cruvelli
cvie a
Qs au again
ccoanl led o
elu
deud. t
hTehe
evening's
delightful
amusement, ballet o the
in
Diablewhich
Marie Taglioni, as the heroine, not only danced most
exquisitely, but acted with infinite spirit. The house
was crowaed in every part.

FRENCH PLAYS.
ST. JAMES'S THEATRE.

Mademoiselle Rachel concluded her engagement last
evening by performing Camille, in Les boraces. This
is her greatest part in the classic drama, and
never did she perform it with greater power
and intensity than last evening. She com-
pletely took her audience by storm in the last act,
and at the conclusion she was greeted with what may,
without exaggeration be denominated a hurricane of ap-
plause. She has appeared no less than 40 times during the
present season, aad has sustained five new characters,
viz., Lcsbie, Madlle. de Belle Isle, Valeria, Lydie, and
La Tisbe ; of these the last is certainly the greatest—
indeed, we consider the character of La Tisb6
as the greatest in Rachel's repertoire. In Victor Hugo
she has found an author whose inspirations are
much better suited to her fervid and impassioned
genius than are the cold platitudes of the French
classical drama. We hope to see her here again
next year, and we have no doubt that whenever she
again accepts an English engagement Angelo tyran de
Padoue will be the most popular of the dramas in which
she will appear.