The Sun.
London, England, 1842-03-31 00:00:00

HAYMARKET THEATRE.

Shakspeare's beautiftd•_ pastoral, As Yva Like P, WO S
performed at this thcatre lafi evening, for the purpose
of introducing Mr. H. Hell, from the Theatre—Royal,
Liverpool, to a metropolitan audience, in the character
of Orlando. Mr. Holt possesses all the physical requi-
sites for success in the profession he has chosen. In
person he is tall, well formed, Nvith an expressive • coun-
tenance, a good eye, a powerful and sonorous voice,
and (a great point in an actor) a clear and distinct
enunciation. His conception of the character was good,
and in the quiet scenes of the part he was excellent. In
the scenes with old Adam in the forest, where the old
man sinks from fatigue, and is supported by Orlando,
Mr. Hull's acting was beautifully pathetic, and elicited
loud applause. He was also very good in the scenes
with Rosalind, but in the scene where he bursts in upon
the Duke and his friends there was a tendency to overact-
ing—a tendency but too common with actors fresh from the
provinces, which Mr. Roll would do well to avoid, and
which a little practice on "the London boards will soon
enable him to get over. Let him also beware of imita-
tion. It is a rock on which many a promising actor has
made shipwreck. Nature has endowed Mr. Roll with
talents of no Mean order. Let him assiduously seek to
develop those talents by patient stney and assiduous ap-
plication. He has not so Much to learn as to unlearn, and
what he has to unlear*will not be a difficult task to him.
He has only to follow his own taste as his guide itbr it is
evident that the tendency to overacting, • which we have
before noticed, arises more from an idea that such will
please his audience, than from any natural bent " to tear
a passion to rags" in himself. As a melodramatic actor,
we should imagine he is first rate ; but, with his talents,
he should, and no doubt does, aim at something higher,
and it will be his own fault if he do not succeed. He was
called for at the fall of the curtain, and loudly applauded.
Miss Charles was the Rosalind, and never had Rosalind
a more admirable representative. We say this advisedly
and with a full recollection of Miss Foote, in this her
favourite part. Miss Charles looked most bewitchingly
in her male attire. She entered fully into the spirit of
the part, and made every point tell. With what espie-
ylerie did she execute her dainty device fur getting Or-
lando to make love to her. How she did bewilder the
poor youth by her abuse of lovers and love, and
with what delicious archness did she prove hint no true
lover, seeing he wore not his hose ungartered. How
inimitable too were her scenes with. Phoebe, and how
soon did she bring that rustic coquette to her senses,
and yet in all this she never " o'erstepped the modesty
of Nature." In the midst of all her banter, even when
her wit flowed fastest, she never for an instant forgot
that she was the gentle lady Rosalind. And how beau-
tifully did the affection of the warm-hearted girl
triumph in spite of her disguise when she heard that
Orlando had been in danger, and was wounded.
Miss Charles by her performance of Rosalind last even-
ing, has made this class of characters her own. She
has made an immense advance in her professional career,
and sincerely do we congratulate her on it. Mr. Stuart
acted the melancholy Jacques, and thoroughly did he
enter into, and most artistically did he develop the
varied lights and shadows which go to the making up
of the character of this philosophical, and, if we may be
allowed to coin an expression, philophusical misan-
thrope. His recitation of the Seven Ages, was one of
the most chastely correct, and at the same time majesti-
cally beautiful pieces of declamation ever delivered, it
was rapturously applauded. "Webster, the repre-
sentative, par excellence, of Shakespeare's clowns, was
Touchstone, and admirably did he, in his quiet way,
bring out the quaint drollery of the character. We do
not wonder, after seeing Webster's Touchstone, at
Jacque's exclamation—
" Motley's your only wear." .
He was excellently supported by Mrs. F. Mathews, as
Audray. Strieklancb as Old Adam, was perfect. No-
thing could exceed the beauty with which he gave the
celebrated scene, in which he. sets forth with Orlando ;
during the progress of it the tears of his auditors bore
witness to his powers, and at its conclusion their delight
was testified by their rapturous applause. The piece is
very strongly cast, and is well put upon the stage. The
announcement of its repetition on Saturday was received
with considerable applause. The house, although not
crowded, was very well filled.

FASHIONS FOR APRIL.

(From the London and Paris Ladies' Magazine of
... _ .

Fashion.)
Mousselines de laine seem to be entirely replaced
among the more elegant Parisian belles by barege,
made either of worsted and silk, or all worsted, which,
with organdys de laine, taffetas glace, foulards watered
or illustres, barpours d'ete, &c. &c., now divide favour.
Most of the materials for dresses this spring are
either striped, or with running patterns of pines, in
the cachemire style. For the promenade or simple
toilette, the stomacher bodies are less used ; the
corsage a l'Amazone is preferred, and is better suited
for embroidery : th 9 tight sleeves and large .pelerine
are suitable for this style ; the redingote form is
also very much in favour, generally accompanied
with the pelerine cardinal ; the fashionable colours
are orange, garnet, blue myosotis, but more particu-
larly grey and green. In evening dresses the double
skirts continue to be worn, even in satin, when they
are of two colours, the upper not descending lower
than the knee.

Crisping Pompadour, trimmed all round with gimp,
and a large kind of pclerine, termed trabbees, reach-
ing to the knee, are made of shot silks : they have
armholes, or are raised by means of a running-cord ;
the whole trimmed round with a pinked ruche of a
showy colour. A new style of scarf is composed of
bouillons of glace silk, the whole length of the scarf,
divided by bands of gimp, which, being open, show
the lining of coloured silk ; others, in the same style,
form pelerine, which is plain, with the ends only in
bouillons. Velvet scarfs, shaded and embroidered, in
Turkish patterns, satin ones, and foulards de Chine,
with those of cachemire, embroidered with a Turkish
border, and finished with large pine, are among the
novelties of the moment.

The pelerines cardinal are very pretty, made en-
tirely of inlets -of Valenciennes lace, divided by em-
broidery, and finished all round with a broad Valen-
ciennes lace. Pocket handkerchiefs of batiste
Ananas divide favour with those made with inlets
of Valenciennes.
Satin, paille de riz, and crape, are the materials
now in use for bonnets : the form rather approaches
the bibi form, and the flowers are rather •in bunches
than drooping ; indeed a total change is threatened in
this point—as, in Paris they are forming the flowers
to stand up, both for bonnets and coiffures : pink,
straw colour, light green, &c., are the shades in
fashion. Capotes of white satin are lined with pink,
which is sometimes entirely covered with point lace,
but coloured linings are much used.