The Sun.
London, England, 1859-04-26 00:00:00

OLYMPIC.

Here the Paschal season is disregarded, the managers re-
lying on--the. steady attraction of their regular business.
With Mr. Tom Taylor's new coniedietta Points of
the Law," with the ." Porter's Knot," with the " Boots at
the Swan,"..and .with their own little...compact cowl-
pany, including Mr,.Robson and Mrs. Sterling, they make
a goad holiday figure without caring for the holydays.
•

STRAND. -
The holyday entertainments at this theatre commenced
last evening,with the performance of a new comedietta by
Mr. J. Maddison Morton, entitled, " Which of the Two ?"
which was . most favourably received by a numerous
audience. The mainfeature of the piece is the innumerable
laughable mistakes uccasioned by the close resemblance-be-
tween Alexis. Batman (Miss Maria Simpson) and Paul
Betttuan- (Miss Charlotte Saunders), twin brothers and
a
pages to the ussian Emperor. That resemblance *lie en-
awes one of the brothers to display for the other an heroic
affection.f The brusquerie of Baron Mullendorf, Governor
of the Imperial pages (Mr. James Bland), and the bluster
and stupidity of Major Krachwitz, Governor of the Mili-
tary Prison (Ur. H.. J. Turner), provoked roars of laugh-
ter. The curtain fell amid hearty applause, and loud calls
for the author.were.repeated until it was announced from
the stage that he was not present. Then followed the bur-
letta entitled. the ‘ Maid and the Magpie, or the Fatal
Spoon." .The entertainments closed with a farce by Mr.
A. C: Troughton, entitled " Vandyke Brown."

•
THE SURREY. • •
A new drama of the same name, and founded on 'Captain
Reade's popular novel of " Oceola," was produced for the
first time at this theatre, Mr. Creswiek performing th© part
of the Indian shief. As it is the name of the novel and the
name of the piece, it
,may be supposed to be the principal
character,. although an analysis of the story will,. perhaps,
support the ejaims of Yellow Jake or yirgima to that
honour.
_For where would be the thrilling combats without
the villanyof the one or the interesting love scenes without
the charms oft he other ? It is clear that they tould do very
well without Oceola; hut Oceola could not get on at
_O,ll with-
out them._ Yellow Jake is a quadroon woodman, who, for
pressing unacceptable. addresses on Virginia's attendant, has
received some'6o lashes, and he sets the whole drama going,
by 'evincing a deadly. hatred to Virginia and all her family.
Yellow Jake hires an alligator to devour the young lady in
an arbour-, arid OceOla has the good chance to save her.
Yellow Jake catches the young lady in a lonely place at a

,ASTLEY'S.
A numerous audience gave warm N\ elcome to " a new
romantic spectacle" at this " hippodramatic temple" last
evening. The piece, unlike the holyday productions by
whic it has been immediately preceded, busies itself not with
recent or passing events. -The mutiny in India has_had its
day, both beneath the scorching sun-of that country and
at Astley's.. Canton has been bombarded both in real and
mimic warfare. Commissioner Yeh and Nana Sahib have
figured on the Surrey side of Westminster-bridge as wellas
upon a wider field. Time and plade have undergone a
change. Mr. Cooke has betaken himself to the distant past.
Au curly period of oar history—the period of the Crusades
—now furnishes the incidents which areznade the foundation
for the disp'ay of the resources of his establishment. He
transports us back to the days when steel-clad warriors did
battle in the presence and under the inspiring influence of
beauty—to the days of tilts and tournaments. The new
piece, in short, is the story of " Ivanhoe" realised in scenic
action. The plot is the same as that which Scott has so beau-
tifully woven. The same are the dramatis personce, the
stalwart Cco-ur de Lion, the redoubted Knight Templar Sir
Brian de Bois Guilbert, Ivanhoe, the Lady Rowena, Isaac
of York, and Rebecca the high-souled Jewish maiden. It
would be perhaps no more than just to enumerate the horses
also among the chief actors. They certainly constitute not
the least attractive feature in the gay and 'glittering proces-.
sions with which the piece abounds. They, as is invariably
the case at Astley's, curvetted with entire grace, obedient
to the slightest motion of the rider's hand. Whether in
the Lists at Ashby they would have borne themselies
so successfully under the weight of mailed knights it
is needless to conjecture. ' It is enough to say that
they were equal to the occasion and: demeaned themselies
amid the sound of clarion and drum and the clash of swords
with all the nonehalanee of veteran warhorses. The piece
consists of three acts, and is rich in picturesque scenery ;
though it presents few features that can be called novel.
There is the same rushing about of well-trained steeds as
usual; the same hurrying to and fro of eager combatants,
with all the advantage of less noisy tumult and more pleas-
ing effect. At the conclusion of the third act the principal
performers wore summoned before the curtain, and received
such a reception as a holiday ambence..-allowoan giro;
Then followed the. Scenes in the Cita?, drithigfithefinveTess
of which, owing in no inconsideraille extent to-theexertions
of the olown, mirth emdjollity were the order of the day, or
rather of the night.. The performances concluded with--to
use the phraseology of the bills—the "screaming farce" of
"Bathing," which„if the laughter which it excited in the
audience is to be taken as a criterion, fully justified the use
of the epithet by which it is describe4l.

ZOOLOGICAL GARDENS, REGENT'S-PARR.
Few places are more extensively patronised by the holi-
day folks than these very beautiful gardens, and, tho Ugh the
weather yesterday made it about the worst day possible for
seeing them, yet, iu spite of all, there were visitors, and more
than could have been anticipated under the circumstances.
During the whole of this week the gardens will be open for
6d., and it is not too much to say that amid all the attrac-
tions spread for the holiday folks there is none which at all
equals those gardens either in the interest of the exhibition
or the smallness of the fee for which it tan be seen.
The gardens themselves are worth a visit, and just now
they may baleen to perfection. Since last season some valu-
able additions have been made to, the menagerie, inchiding,
among otheat, the gigantic lion presented by the Queen—the
same brute, we believe which on his way here on board the
Himalaya got, out .of- his cage, and took charge of the,main
deck. There are also some magnificent leopards' from
Morocco, one of whom is as large, tierce, and -poiterful as
any tiger from. Bengal. The reptile house has also received
some interesting specimens, including a cage full of the most
irritable Egyptian cobras, Who distend, their hoods and
manifest such deadly tokens of hostility as make the visi-:
tors' flesh creep. There are now a fine pair of hippopotami,
much fatter than last season, and otherwise looking as well
as ever they did, which is not saying much. These, with
rhinoceri, camelopards, elephants, and beasts and birds in- -
numerable, make -these gardens_ as w. have already said,
ine nest and cheapest exhibition in London.

• ROYAL POLYTECHNIC.
The -old popularity of this place under Mr. Pepper seems
by no means to have departed from the new inana".ement,
and, notwithstanding the very unfavourable weather, the
attendance yesterday was as numerous as any Easter Mon-
day we remember. The fine collections of working models,to which several interesting additions have been made, were
all in full play, and occupied the attention of visitors in the
interludes between the various performances and lectures.
The first of these was on the Philosophy of Magic, which
was very ably given by Mr. Gardner, and illustrated by a
series of astonishing and brilliant experiments. The series
of dissolving views of the Holy Land, after Roberts's
sketches, are about the most beautiful and interesting pic-
tures of the kind we have seen, and vividly recall to mind
the unrivalled scenes and sacred associations connected with
the far-famed holy places. Mr. Lennox Horne's lecture
on the Humorous Melodies of England is a sparkling and
most amusing performance, which was listened to with
pleasure and deservedly applauded, and this, with philoso-
phy in sport made science in earnest, afforded ample enter-
tainment .to the visitors till the oxyhydrogen microscope
revealed the wonders in the creation of the most minute
forms of animal and vegetable life.- The whole of the enter-
tainments here is amply varied, and loth amusing and in-
structive in the highest degree. This Easter programme
will, we thihk, remain for some to come a favourite with
the public.

lonely hour, and is about to " finish her"—a word which ex-
presses in a Surrey sense the free use of a dagger, a rifle, a
bludgeon, or anything handy--when again Oceola is oppor•
tune enough to save her. Such gallantry wins the heart of
Virginia, and excuses, perhaps, her bad taste -in preferring
the tawny chief to the more agreeable person of a rich
planter, Arens Ringgold, who is also a competitor for the
prize. But Ringgold is bad, cruel, and vindictive. He
plots a great deal of mischief against his rival, and rather
unfairly seekS to assassinate Virginia's brother, because out
of love for Oceola's sister he favours the rival candidate.
With characters so antagonistic, and abundant opportuni-
ties for.informing each other of their mutual sentiments,
there is a pretty frequent interchange of " coward" and
" villain," " black heart" and " white liver,"• " dog" and
" slave." Indeed, the dialogue may be said to be exceed-
ingly spirited, and delighted the atidienCe proportionately.
Nor was there any lack of stirring pantomime--men saved
from being burnt alive in order to be shot or drowned,
women rescued in the moment of extreme peril, hired as-
sassins overpowered and bound, and conflicts of great physi-
cal power between civilised and uncivilised forces. Virtue
must in the end have been triumphant, for the curtain fell
amid enthusiastic plaudits, and Surrey sympathy was
never yet enlisted on the wrong side. The fact remains
that the piece was a complete success. , Mr. Creswick
played the part of Oceola in his usual effective manner.
Jr. 3 Henry Vandenhoff, a first appearance here, deserves a
word of praise for his careful rendering of Ringgold, al-
though it puzzles one to guess why an American planter
should dress like a Spanish dancer. Mr. Basil Potter, as
Yellow Jake, seemed quite at home, and incited to do his
best by the kind reception which his popularity obtained.
A funny ebony coachman, by Mr. E. Marshall, and a mili-
tary greenhorn, by Mr. Wright, gave a very satisfactory
flavour of the comic element. And when we add that the
music was very ably managed by Mr. "Jolly we have said
enough to insure many repetitions of the crowded benches
which distinguished the first night of the new piece. It
must not be supposed that " Oceola" was the entire carte.
It certainly was the piece de resistance, but two ex-
cellent dishes followed—a screaming farce and a cornice/
tragical, melo-dramatical extravaganza.