New-York tribune., 1876-12-28
THE DRAMA IN LONDON.

erCcrssPIrI IN THE PRoYINCEs-HIs PROBABLE
APPEARANCE IN LOUIS xI.--AN ANGRY FRENCH
MAN ON "ADAPTING" PLAYs-MR. GLADsToNEs
COUNSEL ON HISTORICAL READING-A "LITERA-
TURE PRIMER death OF SIR HENRY DE
HoGHTON.
,vpoM THE REGULAR CORRESPONDENT OF THE TRIBUNEI
LONDON Dec. 9.-The most interesting event OF
the theatrical season has been the appearance oI
Madame ChaumOnt in Toto chez Iata," one OF
those pieces the entire burden of which is sustained
nv single performer. 1t is not given to everybody
IN fiji the stage and concentrate the attention OF the
house. with little or no aid, during whole pay
The most perfect example in English ever saw Is MI
JeiTersons second act of Rip Van Winkle-a master
piece of its kind for though there Is good deal OF
scenery, and large number of figures appear ana
move about during that act, Mr.. Jefferson has All
the talking 70 himself. In "TOtO chez rata"
Madame Chaumont is alone on the STAGE ana the
sole scenery is the bare walls of a garrett Practi-
cally it is half an hour of mOnOOgue, and monologue
of which no description can give any clear notion
The actress must be seen. Whether she should DC
seen in this particular piece was a question much
debated by the censor, but the moment he had
granted his license, everybody who was in town set
tied the question privately for themselves lit the
best manner; by going TO whether she should be
seen. The piece is well known in Paris; in London
it has hitherto been prohibited and permission to
perform it is said to have been obtained by Madame
Chaumont herself in a visit to the Lord Chamber
lain's Office and by help of personal interview
which lasted an hour and included rehearsal OF the
whole play; not, however, in costume. Inc STORY Is
denied but l don't know whether the denlal Is au-
thortati0e Toto is a scbOOlbOy, and the piece is
narrative of his visit to Tata apersOn whom IN defer
ence to foreign susceptblties he describes as an
actress. There could not well be a more delicate
theme for handling nor would any handling make
It delicate in English. 1t must be said however,
that its inherent difficulties are avoided win sing
ular Skill both by the authors of the piece ana Dy
Madame ChaumOnt. There is some skating over
very thin ice but it is always over and not through
Looked at as a matter of art-with which NJ Theo-
pbile autier long since told morals have nothing
to do-nothing but admiration can be felt for the
performance II is powerful and delicate throughout,
and might well be lesson to English actors.
Whether we are to have season of French plays l
have not heard. fifth-rate company which has
been struggling on for a time at the Royalty has
lately closed its doors. Possibly some day French
managers will learn that the English public does
not care to pay high prices for the sake OF seeing
actors who would not be tolerated at any theater IN
Paris which English people ever visit. Probably
good company under good management would IN
ordinary times do well. LondOners--a few OF them
are gradually coming to knowledge of the fact
that for anything like high comedy they must
as q rule look abroad. They may have tragedy, IL
they like in the person of Mr.. Barry Sullivan, now
doing Macbeth at Drury Lane. If they can wait TILL
next week they may see Mr.. Irving in the same
piece at the Lyceum Mr. Irving has been making
during the Summer and Autumn what is called
provincial tour, with great success hear. Mrs.
Bateman the manager of the Lyceum, tells US in an
enthusiastically advertisement that the
verdict of London has been confirmed In every
town Mr.. Irving has visited including Manchester
Birmingham, Liverpool, Edinburgh, and Dublin
She takes the public into her confidence so far as to
announce that the receipts have reached, and IN
some cases exceeded, any previous limit. Out OF ~
performances Hamlet has been given 81 times.
don't know what Mr.. Irving means to play in Lon
don. 1t is not likely that Macbeth, which had but
a moderate success last season with the
critics or with the public, win run for any
length of time. Runor says that it will
shortly be followed by "Lous XI." Mr.. Hermann
Vein is still playing "Dan' Druce" at the Hay
market. At the Court an old piece, New Men and
Old Acres" by Tom Taylor and A. w. Dubourg, has
been freshly brought out and is well spoken OF. L
have not seen this nor any other English piece this
Winter. 1t takes time to make up ones mind to
face theatrical performance in most OF the London
theateTs. 1t happens pretty often that by waiting
awhile you are spared the necessity OF going at all;
the novelty of which so much was expected being
Withdrawn. This was the fate which befell Mrs.
John Woods recent production, The Virginian," at
the st. James Theater The English version Of Sar-
dOu's "Nos Intmes," now acting at the Prince OF
Wales, under the name of Peril" draws good
houses The play has been adapted till its author
might find it is said, some difficulty in recognizing
his own work.
And in touching thus, as it were by accident, on an
old old grievance of the French authors against
Engllsh playwrights, might venture to extract
remark or two from book on London and En-
e,ish Life lately published in Paris. Its author Is
NJ. Henri Bellenger, and his opinion of the English
stage is sume mp rather cuTty, in the remark tnat
it no longer exists as English, that Is In other
countries. France excepted, the same is true. The
stage IN all these countries is invaded according to
NJ Bellenger;,by a crowd of adapters absolutely de-
void of TALENT and lacking even taste and tact He
cites an example The Gaety, at the moment he was
writing filed its auditorium every evening with a
"new piece By blr. Dion Bouccault, entitled Led
Astray." This "new" piece, which had just
achieved a great success in America, whence
the "author7 brought it to London Is sim
ply literal translation of the "TentatiOn" Of
Octave Feuilet played some ten years before at the
Vaudeville in Paris, Nothing had been changed {;
neither the scene nor the of the characters;
the authors" work was limited to a verbatim
rendering. lie had not in this instance, adapted"
the piece; which may, perhaps account for its
success observes the chOlerc Frenchman. He had.
nevertheless contTived to ylgarizc it by placard
drawn up in style which, in France, is confined to
exhibitions Of two-headed calves. That. adds NJ.
Bellenger despairingly, is what dramatic art has
come TO in London and in the land of Shakespeare
Need point out that this violent language is merely
the language of a FreDchman, and deserving there