The Sun.
London, England, 1850-11-09 00:00:00

THEATRE ROYAL, LEEDS.

La Sonnambula, on Tuesday evening, was played to
a crowded house, and was the chef d' curve of the
week. The opening scene by Liza (Mrs. Weiss)
augured well for the after performance. The playful
wooing of Alessio (Mr. Corri) was a finished piece of
burlesque. Amine (Miss Pyne) was not only excel-
lently rendered, but taken in conjunction with her
charming vocalism, the character in her hands fur-
nished a really rich intellectual and musical treat.
Her buoyancy of spirits, depicting the artless simpli-
city of the country maiden (in the scene with the
Notary) and the signing of the marriage contract,
contrasted admirably with her deep and thrilling
pathos in subsequent scenes. In the scene with the
Notary, her great powers as a vocalist were shown in
the chaste and sustained bird-like warble with which
she embellished the principal song. This song elicited
marked approbation from all parts cf the house ; and
afterwards, in the chamber scene, her " Prithee hear
me," electrified the audience, and caused many an
auditor, even of the sterner sex, " to play the woman."
Her walking scene, in the last act, and the beauti-
fully softened tone in which she gave mutual utterance
to her hopes, and fears, and deep despair, whilst tearing
up the nosegay she had taken from her bosom, was really
pathetic. Elvino (Mr. Harrison) was pourtrayed in
excellent taste. He was in capital voice ; and, well
as he always plays in operas, we never knew him ac-
quit himself better. His first indication of the
" green-eyed monster" had a rich comic humour about
it which elicited roars of laughter ; whilst in the
chamber-scene his deeply-wrought agony and mani-
acal singing at the assumed guilt of Amine, were
touchingly effective; and his song—" So gently o'er
my senses stealing," was exquisitely rendered. Count
Rodolpho (Mr. Weiss), in the little he had to do, was
a character well sustained, and his songs were given
with an ease and richness which gained him deserved
plaudits. Upon the whole the opera was well put
upon the stage, and several rounds of applause accom-
panied the fall of the curtain. On Wednesday even-
ing Wallace's beautiful opera of 11faritana was re-
peated, but it did not draw so good an audience as
were present on the two previous evenings. Mr.
Harrison's Don Cwsaede Bazan was a highly satis-
factory performance; indeed, we think his acting ex-
ceeds his singing. He was entirely successful in
hitting off cleverly the bold, dashing, and reckless
Dun Cmsar. The singing of Miss Pyne, as
Maritana, was sweet and finished, and her
acting was marked by a refinement, judgment,
and delicacy that at once showed her correct appre•.
ciation of the gentle, chaste, and constant Maritana.
Her personation of the character met with repeated
applause. The character of Don Jose de Santarem
was well conceived by Mr. Weiss, and some of the
music allowed full scope for his superb bass voice. He
was in one song deservedly encored. The other cha-
racters in the piece were respectably sustained, and
the opera of Illaritana, we may say, passed off suc-
cessfully. At the conclusion, the oneratic corps were
called before the curtain, when Miss Louisa Pyne
received the unusual compliment from a Leeds audi-
ence of a beautiful bouquet of flowers, which was
thrown to her from one of the private boxes. Last
evening (Friday) we had the Crown Diamonds, but
we were unable to attend. We perceive that the
operatic company are engaged for six nights longer,
and we advise all who admire fine singing and good
dramatic performing to make a point of being present
one or more evenings. To Mr. Caple vie have one
suggestion to offer. The effect of the fine singing of
the operatic company was not unfrequently marred
by the wretched rendering of the choruses. In a
town like Leeds, where good choral voices and a
knowledge of music are almost as plentiful as black-
berries, such a drawback ought never to be suffered
by a manager ; and we would suggest to Mr. Caple
the desirability of supplying the deficiency forthwith.
—Leeds Times.