The Sun.
London, England, 1851-06-10 00:00:00

JUNE 10, lB5l.

WHITSUNTIDE AMUSEMENTS

DRURY-LANE THEATRE.

The long-promised " new romantic p'ay " of
ltigornar was produced here last evening with
decided success. The original German version has
been for some time past very popular in " Father-
land," and the present English adaptation by Mrs.
Lovell, the lady of the author of the Wife's Secret,
bids fair to become as popular on the English boards,
" provided always" the piece undergo judicious cur-
tailment, more particularly in the love-making and
sentimental scenes ; indeed, we should recommend
the condensation of the five acts into three. The scene
is laid at Massillia (Marseilles), a Greek colony on the
coast of Gaul, about a century after its foundation.
The barbarous Alemanni have made an irruption
into the colony and carried off Myron (Mr. Cooper),
a goldsmith, into captivity. His daughter Parthenia
(Miss Vandenhoff), sets off for the barbarian camp,
being determined to offer herself as a ransom for her
father. Her offer is accepted by the barbarian chief-
tain (Ingomar), and the Greek girl remains a hostage
in his camp, whilst her father is restored to his fa-
mily. As might have been foreseen, the fero-
cious barbarian is soon tamed down into the
mildest of monsters by love, he becomes the
captive of his captive, and eventually sets her
free, and detaching himself from his barbaric compa-
nions accompanies her to Marseilles. Arrived at
Marseilles, his love will not permit him to quit her,
and he becomes the servant of her father for her sake.
The Alemanni besiege the city, and Ingomar is offered
by the Greek authorities wealth, honours, power, and
Parthenia as his bride if he will betray his country-
men into the hands of the Greeks. He indignantly
refuses to become a traitor, and is preparing to leave
the city a beggar, when Parthenia comes forward,
avows her love for him, and declares her determination
to quit the city with him and share in his wanderings
and his fortunes. This, perhaps the most dramatic
scene in the play, was acted with exquisite taste and
judgment by Miss Vandenhoff and Mr. Anderson,
and was much applauded. The Alemanni enter the
city, and confer upon Ingomar, who is united to
Parthenia, a piece of land outside Masillia, on which
to found a new city, and thus all ends happily. There
is an under plot of the love of an old miser for Par-
thenia, and the said miser, the rival of In-
gomar, eventually gets plundered by the
Alemanni, as all such old hunxes should.
The whole weight of the play fell upon Miss Vanden-
hoff and Mr. Anderson, and was admirably sustained.
The part of Parthenia being quite within the grasp
of Miss Vandenhoff's powers, was excellently acted.
It is a part requiring grace rather than passion, and
in such parts Miss Vandenhoff always shines. Mr.
Anderson's was a fine manly version of Ingomar.
As the barbarian he was somewhat rough, but he
delineated the gradual process of " taming" very
beautifully, and as the reclaimed and civilized
Ingomar acted beautifully. The piece was
superbly mounted ; the scene representing the Bay
and Port of Masillia, was a beautiful picture, and re-
minded us of the days when Stanfield was wont to
paint the scenery for Old Drury. At the conclusion
Mr. Anderson and Miss Vandenhoff were called on,
and there were loud calls for the authoress, who ac-
knowledged the compliment from a private box. The
house was crowded to suffocation.