Year: 1875

The Winter Amusements An New York.


Our dramatic and musical season began
well and deepens in interest as it advances.
Although we are deprived of Italian opera,
none of the managers being rich enough to
support that great musical charity, most Of
them, we are told, being ruined by previous
acts of benevolence, we have the privilege
of hearing in concert and oratorio one of the
finest of lyric singers. To hear Mile.
Titiens sing in ''The Messiah" and "Elijah"
is some consolation for the loss of her Norma
and Medea. But if Italian opera impover-
ishes, German opera enriches the manager,
Judging from Mr.. Neuendort's splendid sue
cess at the Academy. 1t is "a pleasure to look
upon audiences so large and enthusiastic as
those which attended the performances of
"The Huguenots" and the Position de
Loniumeau" last week These audiences
cannot be accused of indifference to music,
for they have endured martyrdom for its
sake. To stand on one leg in crowd for
hours, with your ribs impaled by elbows Of
varying degrees Of sharpness; to support an





consolation than the knowledge that
you are crushing an old gentleman
in front of you; to maintain an upright posi-
ton only because it is physical impossi-
bility to fall; to contemplate the back part
of bald head while the baritone sings ''Vi
ravviso, or some other air equally appropri-
ate to the view; to be almost unable to move
or see; to put your whole body into purga-
tory in order to place your ear in Paradise
this is indeed to be lover of music. And
this is the penance to which thousands Of
our citizens have cheerfully submitted dur
ing the Wachtel performances The Ger
mans of New York have as much reason as
the management or the company to be proud
of the successful beginning Of the German
opera season. The triumph is due in a
great measure to their appreciation, which
shows that we have musical public which
can be depended upon to support musical
enterprise which deserves their aid. We
shall see new evidence of this when Theo-
dore Thomas returns and when Won Bilow
visits US next month.





fortunate We have had Mr.. Davenport
and Barry Sullivan, and now third Hamlet
comes to us in the person of Edwin Booth.
For the first time in many years this cele-
brated tragedian will play in this city, on
another stage than that which he created for
the home of the legitimate drama. Yet he
will win new laurels, no doubt, in Mr.. Days
theatre No transformation scene in
''Humpty Dumpty" is more amazing than
the fact that Mr.. Fox will play at Booths
and that Mr.. Booth will play at the Fifth
Avenue. Pantomime, however, is not ille-
gitimate; Kean appeared in it; Grimaldi i'm
mortalized it, and the Ravels found it field
for the finest comedy. Then we have at
Wallacks performance and play and q
perfection of scenery and effect which might
justify any one in taking the overland route
simply to see that q drama can be better
given in New York than at almost any thea
tre in Europe. An extreme of American
character not the less true because it is ex-
treme is presented by Mr.. Florence, as the
Hon. Bardwell Slote, and the mighty Dollar"
proves to be as powerful in theatricals as just
now it is in our politics. Altogether the sea-
son is rich in variety and sterling dramatic
worth, and the theatres play with undimin-
ished vigor their part in making New York
in its attractions, as well as in its population,
the undisputed metropolis of the country.