The Sun.
London, England, 1860-12-27 00:00:00

ASTLEY'S.

The pantomime, entitled " Harlequin a.nd the
Wonderful Horse ; or, Graciosa and Percinet," is
from the pen of Mr. T. L. Greenwood, a gentleman
well known in the theatrical world as having be en
connected as lessee with Sadler's Wells. The desigl'
of the plot—which of course has a strong dash of
the horse element ill it—is to show the folly and
inconvenience of evil passions, as illustrated by the
Ugly Duchess and the Greedy King, and the success
attendant in fostering these nobler qualities of our
nature, as exemplified by Graciosa and Percinet.
Groguan, the Ugly Duchess, and the Greedy King
persecute Graciosa and Percinet to the utmost
extent, until rescued by the aid of the Wonderful.
Horse, who by the Spirit of Pantomime Are wafted
to a state of happiness, elaborately displayed in the
grand transformation scene, entitled " The Apo-
theosis of Apollo," in the sunlit region of the Fairy
Muses. The Spirit of Pantomime here appears, and,
as psual, commands the several metamorphoses—
" Calling on Yercinet, light, elegant, and gay,
As lively Harlequin, to lead the way."
Graciosa thus becomes Columbine; the Ugly
Duchess, Pantaloon and the Greedy King, Clown;
to each of whom she addresses the following lines:—
" The course now ready, I the signal give,
In scenes of mirth for one short hour to live."
Harlequin here takes his magic wand, and by its
all-powerful aid performs the several pantomimic
tricks. The small part that Miss Emily Scott had
assigned to her (Prince Percinet) was very credit-
ably performed.
Miss Dalton was most painstaking as Columbine,
and the applause she received was well merited ;
whilst Mr. James Cooke as Clown (his first appear-
ance in that character), Mr. Sylvester as Harlequin,
and Mr. G. Perks as Pantaloon, kept up the spirit
and mirth of the performance.
The scenery, by Mr. H. Cuthbert, was beautifully
painted, and met with general admiration. The
tricks and contrivances were clever and ingenious,
and under the inspiring power of the Spirit of Pan-
tomime, Mrs. Thorne, the entertainment—through-
out a very excellent one—ended with the grand
scene entitled the " Apotheosis of Apollo in the
Sunlit Region of the Fairy Muses," and a _hearty
round of applause from the house. Mr. Batty de-
serves well, and we hope his Christmas enterprise
will meet with the success which it merits.

SADLER'S WELLS THEATRE.
The new Christmas pantomime is entitled,
" Harlequin Sinbad the Sailor, or the Fairy
of the
Diamond Valley and the little old Man of the Sea,"
the title of which will call forth many happy re-
collections of juvenile days, when the Arabian
nights' entertainments unfailingly charmed and
fascinated the youthful mind. The opening, in
the form of an extravaganza, has been entrusted to
the experienced hand of Mr. E. L. Blanchard, who
has drawn upon the commercial treaty with France
for some of his humorous incidents. The characters
in the pantomime consist of Mr. Martin, as Harle-
quin ; Mr. Frederick Lauri, Clown ; Mr. Edward
he r good
filled d
taon dancing
overflowing
ian
gnumerous
everya
v a
iclo:lse
Lauri, Pantaloon ; and Miss Phoebe Lauri as
ich
The pantomime, on the whole, went oft
Columbine. There are the usual variety of tricks,
successfully, and greatly to the delight of an
which called forth much amusement and laughter,
anddaue veryd
ballet.
Boni
urce
eteec.
we
sv
spot in the theatre.

CITY OF LONDON THEATRE..
The subject chosen for pantomimic representa-
tion at this theatre is the well known story of Fair
Rosamond, and the unhappy termination put to her
amours with Henry the Second by •
j his enraged.
Queen, Eleanor. It is from the untiring and pro:
lific pen of Mr. Nelson Lee, and is, We understand,
his 209th contribution of this '
kind of entertain-
ment. The title is "pair
Rosamond, or the Quten
with the Dagger and the
80w1.,, The first scene
introduces Infidelity,
-,
Divorce, Breach of Promise,
Jealousy, Mischief, and other con genial spirits bent
on malevolent Purposes. Queen Fidelity (Mrs. H.
Lindon), by means of a fairy herald, communicates
a benevolent message, which is rejected, and then
the difficulties of the plot begin to grow upon us.
The author of course ages the usual liberties with
what we regard m the legitimate narrative, and
when we state that the two principal females in the
transaction are represented by males ; Queen Eleanor
b Mr. E. vyas, and Fair Rosamond by Mr. Gomer-
y
while ary 11. is pourtrayed by Miss M. A. Vie.
sal, n
of the extravagant may be anticipated.
tor, enough
The transformation scene was the finest we ever
Witne 8 s e d , and on each successive stage of its deve.
lopinent Mr. Lee was called for and received the
commendations of a highly-gratified audience.
Mr. Alexander appeared as Harlequin, and
Madame Alexander as Columbine ; Clown,
M. Lupino ; Pantaloon, M. Morelli. Madame
Lupino was principal danseuse in the
ballet, and
the Brothers Ellis acted as sprites. The house was
densely crowded in every part, and many were
unable to obtain admission.