Covent-Garden Theatre.
The Times, 1824-12-28T00:00:00

The holyday amusementsaWthis theatre commnenced last night with the tragedy of Geotge Barnwell-a play, the ,moral of whicb is so unexceptionable, that it is a thousand pities the " boxing" people never listeni to a word of it. George Barn well, indeed, -seems doomed to be dramatically unfortunate. An especial efibrt was made some years ago at the Circus, to ren(der it popular by reviving the original last scene, and actually hanging all the principal male and female charaeterv. But the thing would not do. The audi- ences found out, after a few evenings, that the performers (lid not actually (lie, and the houses fell off directly there. There are points on which the public will not bear imposi- tion. But the pantomime (The Dragon of Wantly.) was to follow-that entertainment which bids fair in the public estimation never to be worn out; but, lilke playing whist, or drinking wiine, or making love, to live on, and be a popu- lar delight for ever. Year after year, it goes on (or should do) reprobating our vices, and curing us of our follies by the reductio ad absurdum ! How the Dandies-it was a moral lesson to behold them-used to turn pale, to a thting, last year when Mr. Ducrow appeared as the Mfocl Lover! Old gentlemen take shame to themselves for their inactivity and unarmusingness, when they see Mr. Barnes in Panta. loun. And young ones-(this has happened in several in- stances)-by looking at Mr.Ellar while he playedHarlequin, havebeenbrought to a resolution ofneverexposing themselves in that character at a " masquera(de" again. And, in fact, the Dragon of Wantly at Covent-garden this year, is not quite so good a thing as it might be; bult if harlequinades were nlot sometimes a meritorious entertainment, they could not have maintained their reception in the way that they have done. A good pantomime should be a runiing corn- mentary-atn annual one, upon the whims and speculations of the year: and it has this aclvantage over all other vehi- cles of dramnatic satire-that it may embrace an almost needless variety of subjects,without the necessity of connect- ing linke to run from one topic to another; aided by such a display of. painting, music, dancing, machinery, and deceration, as woulti almost be suffi- cient to keep an audience engaged for two hours in itself. The story of The Dragon of Wantly will be familiar to all ages andl all conditions; and the first con- siderable incident in the piece at Covent-garden, is the combat, sung by poets out of number, between that des- perate reptile and More of More Hall! A huge black dragon jumpedoutot his den, " With his li-lo, lantre-down dilly; " That had killed the Lord knows how many meni, " With his li-lo, lantre-down dilly !" The Covent^garden Dragon is not blacl;, but green and red; and this is very likely to have been the true colouringi; (over and above that they have lately become " potential" at this house in all matters relating to costume.) The combat is not very happily managed. We expected, at least, to have seem the Knight swallowed alive by his antagonist-not to speak of the probability that, his spurs tickling the monster's stomach, he nmight be cast up again; but the whole hattle went off with some rather clumsy wrestling and cutlgelling; the most facetious circumstance of which was rather an accidental one-to wit, that the dra- gon's tail camtle off'at the very beginning of the edgagemcnt. More, being victorious, and changetl to Harlequin, the comic business of the piece begins-which suffers some- thin, from there being no Lovelr, but merely a Pantaloon provided for the Clown to cut jokes upon. The scenery at Covent-gardlen is always good; antl there are things worth seeing this year, though not so many as there were in the last. The "new Tunnel" under the Thames is striking, and well managed as to perspective; anl the change to " the river set on fire," with the agony of the fishes, is almost laughable. Blackfriars-bridge Macadmizing is merely a simple view upon a flat. The " Grand sailing mnatch," with the " Moving Panorama," gives some bold examples of architectural painting; and exhibits Colonel Trench's " intended alteration" at the water-sidle (in the only way, we presume, in which it is ever likely to bo exhibited). Some of the " tricks" are very ingenious, as pieces of ma- chinery; especially the change of the mail-coach and horses, with four passengers inside, and two out, into the White Horse-inn, Fetter-lane, aforesaid passengers looking out of the window. The picture of the York Waggon, too, which is changed into a ship, is well executed, although the incident which leads to it is not effective. The fault of the pantomine is, indeed, generally, that it does not contain a sufficient quantity of wit. The incidents are not veryoriginal, and there has been too much left to the carpenter, or else the gentleman who wrote the drama should take towriting tragedy directly, one or the other. For it is not sufficient to make an ingenious " trick," as the thing is called, to construct apiece of machineryeapable of being turned from one shape into another, There should be some hit-some jest conveyed-or at least some broadly humorous con- trast. A good pantomime trick should be an epigram in two lines-the objsct presented should be the first-the change (constituting the commentary), the second. If the tailors company sits down to a banquet, and on a sudden all the fowls and -sirloins, and made dishes, ehanae to so many great cabbages-there the joke is olld enough; but (take this by way of example) there is some- thing meant. But there is no whih in coolly constructing a steam-carriage, and then as coolly riding off the stage in it. Some ideas are given that have a touch or fun about them; but they are not A great many. The turning the house topsy-turvy, and the people walking out upon their beads, has a droll effect; so has the cutting off' of MIr. Barnes's arm, and his subsequent appearance as a ghost to Mr. Gri- inaldi in prison. But too much relianee seems to have been placed upon the race-course scene atEpsom-the preparation and laying out of this scene is extremely rapid anti clever; but, for the pomies, aid. all that-the' inventor was dis- Ibappointed himself, probably, when he witnessed the effect There is a great deal more in the pantomime that. is good, and a good deal mnove that is rather fiat and insipid. but we have not space to discuss its merits any further. The old performers all di(l txcellently well. Grimaldi's face gets more elastic every fresh distortioll that he ac- complishes with it. Miss Romer, the new Colunmbine, is not the best thing that a Columbine could be-a first rate, dashing, English hornpipe dancer; but she is pretty and active, an4 smiles pleasantly, and has a very handsome leg-ce qid neate (for Columbine) rien. If a ciltib of 'wits, as we have sa- wbcfore, wereto write a pautomirue-(anti there is no reason vi'y they should not do so)-they would probably proaducesomnetbing more lively than theDra- gon oj Wantly ; but, nevertheless, there is a great deal in that piece, got up and:a4de as it is;'ex.remely-creditable to the mnanagers.i- Tffi last seioe *:Af.7ee ofW;Watersis splendid and tasteful in a hig-h ee.>-iknd the whole, allowing for a first nig)lt-'.korWifi4y teIe;;V?ent ofF very smoothly to a crowded audience,",,, COVENT-GARDEN THEATRR.