The Sun.
London, England, 1844-12-27 00:00:00

THE PANTOMUKTIS, ETC.

DA 111."../. A /V 7.2 E.ATRE.
,After the performance of Balfe's opera of the
Daughter of St. Mark, which was played here last
tight for the twenty-third time, the new Christmas
4lltchmime of Harlequin and Robinson Crusoe was
brought forth. The audience was less noisy than
1131141, and waited with most exemplary patience for
t}l
rising of the curtain that was to give them a view
Gf their old friends Robinson Crusoe and his man
itr"la3'. The pantomime opened in a very promising
il'anuer, with a sketch of a distressed author who was
tawant of a subject for his usual Christmas enter-
ent. In this exigence the fairy Puck comes
`Q lus assistance, and giving him his choice of a sub-
IT) he selects the favourite tale of Robinson Crusoe.
a first scene represents Crusoe wrecked on the
desert
1111 island, and carrying out his cargo from the
IN Which lies high and dry on the shore. Some
I;tlighter was excited by the acting of Mr. H.
,„,aSrle (Crusoe) in this scene, who displayed
uch broad pantomimic humour. We next find him
11,d;„11eirig himself to a party of Caribee Indians,
•11 some of whom he dances the Polka in a very
, "ginasical style. His man Friday (Wieland) now
:l akes his appearance on the stage, and a very laugh-
-18 scene takes place between him and his master in
the litter's house, " built with his own hands," when
t
e teaches his servant how to cook a leg of mutton
kab •
v._ ell a pudding. While they are seated at supper
:" a party of young Caribs, other Indians rush
the scene changes to the old wreck, and Crusoe
byto itlediately afterwards is seen taking his departure
I‘l, the " Waterman " steamer for London-bridge.
e"e usual transformations now take place :—The
ititribee king is changed into the Clown (T. Mat-
‘"), his club-bearer into Pantaloon (Howell),
erineeParamatta into Harlequin( Wieland), while Miss
pkil°ll comes forward as Columbine. The first scene
,('‘ the pantomimic transformations is the exterior of a
;11181c-shop wherein the Clown and Pantaloon, while
t7t,,,Ying on 'the violin.cello and bassoon, are suddenly
"q up into the air, and let drop again on their
stools—an ingenious trick, which was much
PLaUded. The exterior of the Insolvent Debtors'
rla", which changing to the baths and wash-house
bUtthe labouring classes, was a very bustling affair,
Was sadly deficient in point, except in the solitary
,4tanee when the warm-water baths were changed
t
`') boiling-water baths by the mal•adroit pumping
ithe Clown, and the bathers come out parboiled.
o`;e trick of Harlequin in the bag with his head cut
ft Wass also an ingeniously managed device ; but we
tt our praise of the pantomime must close with this,
N
the concluding scenes were exceedingly heavy,
Were scarcely redeemed by the humorous manner
iiihwhich the Clown sang the old song of " Hot Cod-
it;gB." The last scene of her Majesty's christening
4"loyal Exchange was, comparatively speaking,
1,5', and indeed the whole pantomime went off heavily,
4r. it is not remarkable for splendid scenery, neither
Am, all recommended by humour or ingenuity.

COVENT-GARDEN THEATRE.
„'"lis theatre opened last night for a brief season
the management of Mr. Laurent. Its stage
1,4 been devoted to so many purposes foreign to the
4114, that it was pleasing to find its curtain rising
bat 4 taore for an English play, even though it was
qstanding dish for it Christmas audience, George
qNvell. It require some time to test the policy
reduced prices, but their effect, joined to the holi-
44Neaking spirit of the season, was seen last night
14° ,4e of the most numerous audiences ever assem-
there. The house was literally crammed in
er3'' part. The great attraction of the night was, of
liarse, the pantomime, which is the production of Mr.
0,e.13°11 Lee, entitled Harlequin Crotchet and Quaver,
for the Million. The generality of pantomimes
;jll with a burlesque of some well-known story, the
'llllte of which are readily seized by the audience.
is °ne, however, is an exception to the rule, and,
ge L. I
‘4ear, not a happy one, and as the. audience seemed
first not to listen to the opening dtalogue, the
4: scenes could hardly be understood. The first
1411.! ii the Hall of Discord, a grotesque scene, that
htt have been imagined by Phiz himself; the body-
ci of the Demon is a band of brass instruments,
the `vd with emotion as well as sound to these, E as
dru,,,t44 play-hooks say, the Demon rises in a gigantic
tile from which he emerges, and, after lamenting
44,P1sc'gress of music, he summons Sharp, Flat, and
three of
the ordinary masked spirits of Pan-
Itne to aid him in spreading discord, he having
already gained them over filom the cause of Apollo and
t,pelody—the last the good genius of the plot.
),,1! also engages them to carry off Young Crotchet,
40 is in love with Miss Semiquaver, the daughter
bt
Demisemiquaver. Apollo sends Mercury to chal-
41'ge the Demon to a trial of skill, a pantomime, and
Tdsucceeds in which Mercury commands the
Til of Melody for his master in ,the coming contest.
to :re is some pretty music in this scene, and the
"g given by Mi3s Lyons as Melody was encored.
hthe cottage of Demisemiquaver is then shown—a
i 3 Use) which is an entire musical composition, for it
fed by music books, with trumpets doing duty
tt
elairnnies, and the front covered with notes. The
I,:ttk°4 offers old Demisemi to change all these notes
,`° god if he will give him his daughter. He con-
ettltSt and the transformation takes place, in a very
OPtive manner, every dot being turned to a sove-
wii• The Demon's band have previously carried
h. the lovers to the "Cottage on the Cleft',"
t4ei'll is then exhibited, and here Apollo effects
tg,ellange of all the characters into the comic person-
-1.81 Who have to caper and cuff and frolic through
the rest of the pantomime. A novelty in this one is
Li6l4ct of there being two harlequins and two colum-
O. The Clown was Mr. C. Marsh, and the Pan-
Mr. T. Blanchard ; the duplicate harlequins
toire Messrs. Smithers and Frampton ; the brace of
ttlilnlyines Misses Massall and Ryalls. The comic
th:lllies3 includes hits at most of the topics of the day ;
'nth the
of them was a Lord Mayor's procession,
'it" the ,4 man in brass," and placards hinting at
lii`.o4l4h settlements," &c., which produced roars of
and the washing-houses of the people, with a
oi)-`114 on balling, the Clown including a dissertation
tilt-84aP• The gaming-houses, photography, union die-
theY') cheap tailors, and miraculous pills, all furnish
nota of fun. The last scene, presenting an exterior,
'N -changes into a clockmaker's shop, with all the
ktl44lllla ms moving, and clock-dials walking about the
as capitally managed, and told exceedingly
1411
Pei; It concludes, of course, with a gorgeous
sceme, the curtain falling upon a " blaze of
tre which we hope will be converted into one

HAYMARKET THEATRE.
tr The season of Christmas, amongst its various
td :tees of amusement, is especially prolific in the
tti:atrieal, and nowhere is public expectation more
Liie Of being gratified, than at the Haymarket. The
°f fare, on the present occasion, could not have
4 I selected with more judgment, or have afforded
eteater treat to the audience. It was no drawback
touhstil the evening's entertainment that the favourite
11;le(IY* of Old Heads and Young Hearts, which has
twi, been performed upwards of thirty times, and is
thn'er increasing than declining in popularity, was
ti,T3erl as the introductory piece of the night. The
A,"44 of this admirable play was established from the
14,t• It is, in fact, exceedingly well adapted for
into action the whole strength of the Hay-
pr-t.het corps. Where all the acting was beyond
14141'e, we must not make selections, but it is almost
ht:°ssible to avoid saying that Farren and Buck-
et itie exceeded themselves, and elicited repeated bursts
by 1$ exceeded
and applause. The comedy was succeeded
new " Grand Moving Diorama, or Pictorial
pi°l. in Switzerland." Of the artistical skill dis•
tit4-led in the preparation of this diorama it is impos-
pr,:et° speak too highly. The views successively
lakellted to the spectators included the town and
te°t Zurich, the town of \\'ellenburg, the snowy
a 14:f the Alps, Tell's chapel co the Lake of Uri,
Sub ale of Hasi and snowy peaks of' the Great
eWeck, interior of the dungeon of Chillon—a spot
13 with with an intense interest by the genius of
lines` in the beautiful poem commencing with the

In Chillon's dungeons, deep and old,
Thi:there are seven columns, massive and gray."
hi rexcellent exhibition is the production of Mr. P.
1138, and cannot but add greatly to his previous
fPlitftti". This, however, was not the grand feature
.tt‘ ,tll4 night, any more than the opening comedy.
new and original grand musical fairy extrava-
:E—",",by the author of The Fair One with the Golden
r *l4, and many other pieces of a similar

. ,
...

~ .~

kind, naturally formed the grand attraction of s
' '`. •
a w ell-known tale of the nursery by the Countess
D'Anois, entitled Graciosa and Percinet. In a case
of this sort it would be fruitless, and it: certainly is
not necessary, to give any detail of plot, since all the
world, or at least that part of it who are addicted to
such amusements, must be aware that the whole
charm is in the dialogue, which, in the present in-
stance, was most skilfully constructed, with a
view to exciting the risible powers of the
audience. It may be as well, however, just
to state that the piece turns upon the love of King
Uxorious, a widower, unexpectedly bewitched (Mr.
J. Bland), for the Duchess Grogon, a maiden lady
of a very uncertain age, the owner of a capital cellar
(Mrs. Stanley), and the jealousy of the latter against
her step-daughter, for whom she conceives an invete-
rate dislike at first sight, which she evinces by invent-
ing every Method of torturing her. We should
mention, by the way, that Lord Nimroddy,
who acted as grand huntsman to the King, exhibited
the character in the most amusing light. In the
working out of Duchess Grogon's plots against Gra-
ciosa ample opportunity was afforded for introducing
a very sprightly and most unexpected collocation
of words, which, as they fell upon the ear in quick
succession, called forth shouts of spontaneous laughter.
Miss Julia Bennett, as the Princess Graciosa, a model
for daughters, and Miss P. Horton, as a Fairy Prince,
and the perfection of lovers, were each truly admirable,
and sustained the characters throughout in the most
effective manner. Several duets were executed by
them during the progress of the piece. The ballet
evinced that great care had been taken in the prepa-
ration of this most necessary department. We must
particularly notice the introduction of a number of
tiny dancers, who were introduced incidentally.
Judging from appearance, they could not have been,
on the average, more than five or six years old, yet
the greatest order was preserved ; and Masters Dot,
Trot, Tiny, Tip, Alite, Atom, and Grain, together
with Misses Midge, Mok, Speck, Spangle, Drop,
Pinshead, &c., exhibited a perfect miniature of the
elder ballet. On the whole, it is impossible to speak
too highly of the evening's entertainment. Not a
single incident occurred to interrupt the harmony of
the scene.