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Leader (1850-1860), 25th May 1850, Edition Country of 1, Page 17, o- HOYAL ITALIAN OPERA. Meyehhtsbil's op...

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      Goodsir's Arctic Voyage. An Arctic Voyag...

      The light passing breezes and cats paws which had dimpled the water for some hours back had died away . It was now so calm that a feather dropped from the hand fell plumb into the sea . But it was the dead stillness of the air which was so peculiar . No hum of insect , none of the other pleasant sounds which betoken it is day , and that Nature is awake , can be expected here even at midday in the height of summer , twenty miles from land , and that land far within the Arctic Circle , where , if one may sav so , a third of the year is one long continuous day . Yet there is a most perceptible difference , — there is a stir in the air around , —a sort of silent music heard during day which is dumb during night . Is it not strange that the deep stillness of the dead hour of night should be as peculiar to the solitude of the icy seas as to the centre of the vast city ? "

      There is no lack of excitement in the capture of whales , and Mr . Goodsir describes it with , gusto ; here is a sample : — " The harpooners were all busy in their boats , examining their guns , harpoons , and lances ; the attention of every one else was directed towards the bay , when the sudden cries of ' A fish ! ' ' A fish close astern ! ' * A mother and sucker ! ' caused a rush to the boats ; in an instant a couple were manned , lowered , and after her . There she is—a large whale , with the calf sporting about , and but a short way astern ; the deep roust , and the spouting fountain of her blast , contrasting with the weaker and lower one of the calf . Ah ! they are down

      —the quick eye of the mother has seen the boats , and she is off . The faces around me on deck begin to elongate , and their owners begin to think that it will prove but a ' loose fall' after all . But , no ; the harpooner in the headmost boat is a sharp fellow and an experienced—he has marked which way the fish has * headed , ' and he is off after her , bending to his oar , and urging his men to do the same , until the boat seems to fly over the water . For twenty minutes they pull steadily on in the same direction . Now , see ! the boatsteerer is pointing ahead ; it is the calf thatch as risen to breathe—had the poor mother been by herself she would have been far enough by this time , but she stays by her

      heedless offspring , and she now appears at the surface also , within a ' fair start' of the boat . A few strong and steady strokes and they are at her . ' He ' ! he has pushed out his oar ; and stands to his gun . ' There is a puff of smoke ; an instant afterwards a report—the boat is enveloped in spray , and the sea around broken into foam—as with an agonized throe the mighty creature dives , in the vain effort to escape . All this has been witnessed from the ship with the most breathless anxiety ; but now every soul is bawling , ' A fall ! ' * A fall ! ' at the pitch of their voices , whilst the rest of the

      crew are tumbling pell-mell into the remaining boats , which are lowered almost by the run , and , without the loss of a second , are off towards the ' fast one , ' which is now seen , with its 'jack' flying , a happy si g ht to the master , who directs it to be replied to , by hoisting the ship ' s 'jack' at the mizen . The harpooneers in the loose boats now station themselves around the fast one , but at some distance from it , to be ready to attack the whale the moment she appears at the surface , with the exception of one , which remains beside it to ' bend on , ' should the fish take out all its lines .

      " Half an hour is now past , and during that time the fish has been * heading ' towards the ship , so that the boats are but a short distance from us . Every instant she may be expected to reappear at the surface . ' There she is ! ' ' Hurrah , boys ! ' ' She spouts blood . ' The first harpoon has been well aimed , and sent home with deadly force ; she is already far spent ; but a second and a third are sent crashing into her , and she dives again and again , but for a shorter space each time , until at last she lies almost motionless on the surface , whilst with the long and deadly lance they search out her most

      vital parts . * Back ! back , all of you ! she ' s in her dying flurry . ' No , she is too far spent ; it is only a faint flap of her heavy fin , and a weak lash of that tail which , an hour back , could have sent all the boats around her flying into splinters . She turns slowly over on her side , and then floats , belly up , dead . * Three cheers , boys ! for our first Pond ' s Bay fish : I ' se warrant ye , she ' s eleven feet if she ' s an inch , and I ' m sure she ' s no been that ill to kill , ' cries out some excited harpooner . The equally excited men replying by three cheers of triumph that make the blue bergs ring again . "

      May 25, 1850.] ®1> * 3leatjcv, 209

      May 25 , 1850 . ] ® 1 > * 3 LeatjCV , 209

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      O- Hoyal Italian Opera. Meyehhtsbil's Op...

      o- HOYAL ITALIAN OPERA . Meyehhtsbil ' s opera , Roberto il Diavolo , produced on Thursday night at this theatre , leaves every former representation in this country so far behind , that we appear to have heard it for the first time . Convinced as we are of the intense dramatic power and originality of construction displayed in this opera , we are inclined to believe that it contains but Aie elements of greatness . The genius rises in flashes . "We always seem on tho eve of something which shall be systematically developed according to the noblest models , but as often arc we doomed to disappointment . The materials are there , but tho continuity of design , without which no creation can be invested with permanent vitality , is wanting , in spite of the many beauties scattered throughout tho work , even the most stanch ; u ) mirerr > of Meyerbeer invariably foci after a perioririnneo of tiiis . peivi in it .- * " integrity . " In a comparison with tho composer ' s later work , the Jlugiumot . s , we tec something more than mere musical preeminence to account for the superior success of the latter opera . The plot of tho

      Huguenots is most artistically constructed , the story is of strong human interest , and the incidents leading to the memorable massacre of St . Bartholomew , are exciting in the extreme . The story of Roberto , on the contrary , is but a silly Easter-piece sort of affair ; the old-established struggle of the Good and the Evil Genius for the possession of people whose chief crime , you yawningly admit , is the unpardonable crime of dulness . " Alice , " who undertakes to personify virtue and innocence , is , we are compelled to acknowledge , somewhat of a bore . "Bertram , " the wicked , is a " Mephistopheles " with the intellect left out ; so that when , after four hours , he is " sent to the devil , " really cannot say that it is " somewhat ere his time . "

      The cast on Thursday evening included all the principal vocalists , but we are somewhat puzzled to understand how it was that Grisi undertook the part of ' Alice . " A character more unsuited to her could hardly have been selected , and we are convinced , by her manner throughout the opera , that she perfectly agreed with us . Her two songs , Va , dit elle , " and " Quand je quittai la Normandie" ( we cannot persuade ourselves to give the Italian titles ) , positively went for nothing , and it was only in the impassioned parts of the concerted music that her power in the opera was sensibly felt . Had she exchanged parts with Madame Castellan , who played " Isabella , " the general effect would have been materially heightened . Grisi is too great

      an artist to trifle with her reputation , and we can only imagine , therefore , that a desire to strengthen the general cast has , in this case , induced her to violate her better judgment . Madame Castellan seems resolved this season to gain the highest honours . She played and sang the part of the " Princess " to perfection , giving us by far a more eloquent interpretation of Robert , toi que j ' aime , " than we remember from any former " Isabella . " Signor Tamberlik sang the music of ** Roberto" in his very best style , which , as we have remarked on former occasions , does not mean in the very best style . He has much to learn in the art of producing gradations of tone ; and , as we have little faith in the school in which he has

      been educated , we fear that he is at the present moment almost as good a singer as he will ever be . Mario gave much effect to the small part of " Itambaldo , and proved that he could allow others to share with him the public applause without in the slightest degree lowering his position . Herr Formos , who played the part of the knight-fiend , " Bertram , " is a man who must not be viewed through a microscope . His personations are broad dramatic pictures , dashed off with the energy of a true artist , and if they are to be criticised at all must

      be criticised in their entirety . His " make up was excellent , and the sardonic expression which lurked beneath his assumed knightly character , showed that he had truthfully studied the ** Bertram " of Scribe . His scene before the cavern was one of the finest pieces of dramatic acting and singing we ever heard , and in the unaccompanied trio with " Roberto " and " Alice , " the full sonorous tone of the lowest notes told with wonderful effect . We are inclined to believe that the mixture of the German with the Italian artists at this great Lyrical establishment is likely to be in the highest degree beneficial to both .

      The orchestra interpreted the difficult score of Meyerbeer to perfection ; and the chorus , making a few allowances for a first night , was distinguished by precision and energy . The unearthly effect produced by the muffled voices in the cavern was extremely well managed . The scenery , especially the interior of the ruined chapel by moonlight , was beautifully painted throughout ; and we sincerely hope that tho artistic taste displayed by all concerned in the production of this elaborate work will be appreciated by the public as it deserves to be .

      French Plays. An English Audience Is Not...

      FRENCH PLAYS . An English audience is not to be compared with a French audience for the relish of Art and exquisite writing . Our beef-eating public needs grosser stimulants . The delicacies and refinements which charm a Parisian audience send ours to sleep . Hence many of the most successful French pieces have failed in England . If Jerrold could secure every night such an audience as that which saluted with shouts

      of laughter the first appearance of his Catspaw , his comedy would be played a hundred nights ; but the picked audience of a first night , with its large sprinkling of intelligent men and women , meets an author half way . Shakespeare felicitously snys that half the prosperity of a jest ( how fine the wording of tho remark !> lies in the hearer ' s ear ; half the prosperity of a comedy , therefore , lies in tho aptitude of the audience .

      In Paris two or throe years ago Madame Allan , on her return from St . Petersburg , determined on playing one of Alfred de Musset ' s charming trifles , which wiv m v ; r fh'stined for the stnjro , and which no one had ever thought of as suitable for representation . Tho J ' rovorhe was played ; the success was amazing ; all Paris ran to see this exquisite bagatelle . It was something now , and novelty is so captivating 1 It

      gtCune porte soit ouverte ou ferme ' e was . also succeeded , and Alfred , who had almost dropped out of the literary world , though his light , playful , and piquant poems still lived in men ' s memories , suddenly reappeared as a personage , and was entreated to write a comedy for the Theatre Francais . He wrote Louiso ? i—which Mr . Mitchell treated us with on Wednesday . It is but a bagatelle , but it is charming . Nathalie is the gay " Louison" ^ suddenly transformed into a governess in the Duke ' s

      housefoundThat was piquant in its novelty : a play -without any action , without any of the " effects" to which men had become habituated had the charm of contrast such as one may experience in listening to a dulcet opera by Winter , with its meagre instrumentation , after the prodigality of brass and parchment in Donizetti , Verdi , Halevy , or Meyerbeer . Un caprice became the caprice of Paris . De Musset ' slender volume was read and read again , in the hope of finding some other gem of the same kind , and 11 faut

      " Gouvernante de quoi ? Monsieur n ' a pas d ' enfans ; II en fera plus tard , " ( the expression with which she said "il en fera plus tard" was enchanting)—where the Duke falls in love with her at first sight , and she is forced to marry Berthaud" ( Regnier ) to escape from the Duke , and the Duke himself rejected by •« Louison , " finds his own Duchess asleep , and falls in love with her , resolving to brave the ridicule of uxoriousness . No . hing can be slenderer than the texture of this

      piece . It is not a sketch ; it bears the same relation to a genuine comedy that a pastel does to a painting ; and as a pastel , if executed with skill and delicacy , may be more delightful than a mediocre painting , so is Loxiison more agreeable than many a more ambitious piece . Nathalie plays to perfection . Regnier's gaucherie and vivacity admirably represent the peasant newly installed at Paris . His self complacency also was nicely indicated ; not overdone . Nothing could be better than the way in which he

      said—Voua Gtes bicn gentille , on lc sait , on voit clair ; Mais , moi , je nesuis pas si laid qucj ' en ai Vair ! But to see Reanier in perfection you should go to the Mari d la campagne . He " created" Colombet , and played it a hundred nights the first season in Paris . With a voice hard , harsh , and nasal , with a face that is plain and yet not comical , Regnier , nevertheless , by mere force of animal spirits and keen perception of naturalness is one of the most comical and agreeable actors on the stage . In Colombec his vivacity is unflagging yet never boisterous , never oppressive ; and the shouts of the audience testify to their delight . Nathalie , as the wife , was ravissante !

      Novelty Fair At The Lyceum. Not Content ...

      NOVELTY FAIR AT THE LYCEUM . Not content with Easter pieces and Christmas pieces , the rage for burlesque and spectacle has invented a new occasion—Whitsuntide . Well , the more the merrier ! Give us amusing pieces , and we will not plague you with further questions . We always hated those toasts which were heralded by " Gentlemen , if you'll allow me , I'll give you an excuse for drinking : May he that won ' t do something or other never do something else ! " An excuse for drinking , forsooth ! As if , when the wine is good , that were needed . Therefore , Madame Vestris , whenever you have an

      occasion for bestowing your prodigal fancy and unrivalled taste in " getting up " a spectacle , don ' t wait until the consecrated " season " arrives , but make a season with your own success . Novelty Fair is welcome for itself . The idea is happy , and it has been felicitously illustrated . It is a parody " denoting a foregone conclusion" of what 1851 will furnish . Frank Mathews , as the British Lion of pacific propensities , with his " Too ral loo ral loo rallido , " realises the ideal of Bottom the Weaver , for not only does he 4 roar you an ' twere any nightingale , " but the audiences do cry " Let him roar again . " That rising young

      actress , Julia St . George , throws great heartiness into " Britannia , " and sings an Italian Medley with a charming mixture of parody and musical expression . But the weight of the piece rests on Charles Mathews ; who , as the anticipation of a fast young man of 1851 , in a puce velvet coat , black satin unnamc * ablos , and a waistcoat and shirt of inconceivable magnificence—the delirium of a gentish imagination y * ct presents an appearance of considerable fascination , which his easy acting and inimitable " patter " singing increase . The piece is mado up of hits at admirabl tho

      passing topics—some of them told y ; and jokes are throughout fresher and more sprightly than tho authors of burlesque usually treat us with . This is necessary , as there is no story in the piece . It professes to be a review , and a very amusing review it is . The tableaux vivans of Spain , Italy , and France , — the Spaniards lounging und dancing , —tho Italians playing morra , eating maccaroni , confessing , lovemaking , and sloeping , —and the French at a barricade , —were severally striking , and drew down thunders of applause . Go and sue Novelty Fair .

      Reappearance Of Fllezzolinl. At Her Maje...

      REAPPEARANCE OF FllEZZOLINl . At Her Majesty ' s Tlieutro , on Tuesday , Madame Frezaolini , aftor several years' absence , made her appearance in Lucrezia Borgia * She has immensely

  • Citation
    • Leader (1850-1860), May 25, 1850, page 17, in the Nineteenth-Century Serials Edition (2008; 2018) ncse-os.kdl.kcl.ac.uk/periodicals/l/issues/cld_25051850/page/17/