The Sun. — 1844-02-20 (London, England)

PRINCESS'S THEATRE.  Bellini's opera of Norma was produced at this theatre last evening with Mrs. Wood as Norma, Miss Grant as Adalgisa, and Mr. Wood as Pullin. The Norma of Mrs. Wood is a fine and impassioned piece of acting—somewhat deficient, perhaps, in dignity, but full of pathos and energy. She represents Norma as the tender, confiding girl, who, having devoted her whole soul to Pollio, is driven to phrenzy by his desertion. Her " Casta diva" in the first act was beautifully sung, we had fancied that she would have been tempted to introduce too many graces and roulades, but her good taste prevented her from doing this, and she gave this beautiful hymn with the utmost purity of expression. In the scene with Adalgisa and Pollio she was very great. Her manner of giving " His children, too, shall perish," was perfectly harrowing. The duet with Adalgisa in this scene was exquisitely given by Mrs. Wood and Miss Grant, and deservedly encored. Her acting was very beautiful, too, when she resigns Pollio to Adalgisa ; and the trio with which the act concludes was very finely sung by Mr. and Mrs. Wood and Miss Grant. In the opening scene of the second act, her acting was of the very highest order. Driven to madness by Pollio's desertion, she rushes to her children's couch to murder them as they sleep ; but when she sees them the mother's feelings triumph, and, throwing from her the dagger, she in an agony of tears presses them to her heart. Then comes the beautiful duet " Deh Conte," which was given with the most exquisite taste and expression, by Mrs. Wood and Miss Grant. In the last scene, after she has denounced herself as the perjured priestess, and sealed her own condemnation, nothing could exceed the touching tenderness of her address to Pollio, and the duet which immediately follows, was given both by herself and Mr. Wood, with the most exquisite pathos—then came the impassioned appeal to Oroveso to save her children, in which her looks, her tones, her gestures were perfectly heartrending. This last scene was a triumph of art, and the curtain fell amidst the loudest applause. Miss Grant's Adalgisa was very excellent. Her fine voice told admirably in the concerted pieces, and the solo in the first act was given in a manner that would have done credit to the most accomplished singer on the stage. We never before heard Miss Grant to so much advantage. She has improved immensely within the last twelve months, and it will be her own fault if she does not, and that at no distant day, rank among the very first in her profession. Wood's Pollio was a fine manly piece of acting, and he sang the music of the part with purity, correctness, and taste. He is decidedly the best Pollio on the English stage. The choruses are well got up, and the piece is put upon the stage in the same . complete and excellent manner in which operas are invariably got up at this delightful little theatre. At the fall of the curtain Mr. Wood led on Mrs. Wood, and Weiss, whose fine bass voice told admirably in Oroveso, led on Miss Grant. They were all received with the most rapturous applause. The opera was given out for repetition on Thursday ; and it was at the same time announced that this evening General Thomas Thumb, an American gentleman, only 25 inches high, would make his first appearance before an English audience.