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    Untitled Article

    AJili THAT GLITTERS IS NOT GOLD . That is the suggestive title of the new piece at the Olympic , and although the piece does not very happily illustrate the moral of its name , it runs gaily through the two acts , applauded by the laughter and the tears of an audience more enthusiastic than refined . It is , indeed , very near being a perfectly charming piece . I have little doubt its French original ( Le Journal d ' une Fille , or some such title ) has just the grace and verisimilitude we miss in this version for one great distinction between French

    vaudevillistes and most of their English adapters is , that the one know what society is , and endeavour to depict it ; whereas the other , apparently ignorant of all the usages of society , depict not what is daily enacted in our drawing-rooms and streets , but what the stage has traditionally handed down to us as the customs of certain classes : living in greenrooms and greenroom society these men get imbued with a factitious colouring which affects everything they touch , They are always scene-painting ; they rouge the cheek of truth—and that with no delicate hand—yet believe

    they have given it the ruddy glow of health . The present piece is , as I said , very near being charming . It is well worth going to see ; better worth seeing than many a piece of the kind ; and if I make some reservation in my praise , it is because I really felt a regret that so pretty a piece should be hurt by such stagey treatment . The acting was excellent . Leigh Murray , in the rough , manly Stephen , was truthful , genial , and

    pathetic . Mrs . Sterling threw some charming natural touches into her part , though once or twice forgetting herself , and mounting on the stilts of the tragedy Queen . Compton was immensely ludicrous in a preposterous character—and the very force of his acting only made the monstrosity of the part more apparent . Farren had little to do ; and that little not offering any scope for acting . His dress , by the way , was out of all keeping with the scene !

    But I have not told you the story of the piece . Old Jasper Plum , a rich cotton spinner , has two sons , the eldest of whom , Stephen , takes a pride in the mill , and is nothing more than a rough , honest overseer to his own workmen , with whom he is on the best of terms . His brother Frederick has a more aristocratic turn—hopes for a diplomatic career , and marries Lady Valeria Westendleigh . Fred is the father's pride ; Stephen is reproached for not having the same aristocratic aspirations . But Stephen will stick to cotton while cotton sticks to him , and actually intimates his resolution of marrying Martha Gibbs , a factory girl ! To get his father ' s consent is

    not easy , but at last it is obtained on condition that Martha be for three months exposed to the temptations of fashionable life , and if she pass safely through the ordeal , Stephen is to call her wife . It appears that Lady Valeria and Martha were old playmates—Lady Valeria ' s mother having saved the life of Martha's mother . It also appears that Lady Valeria is not ardently attached to the man she is about to marry—her heart has been given elsewhere , but she marries Frederick because he is a good match . The * ' elsewhere " becomes visible in the presence of Sir Arthur Lassels , a friend of Frederick ; Martha perceives it , and resolves to watch over her friend .

    This first act is excellent , not very elegantly written , but full of nice feeling and good situation . The extravagance of Compton ' s partis a blot upon it , descending below farce into ignoble buffoonery , but played by him so as to draw shouts from the multitude . The second act is improbable in structure , and intensely stagey in details ; even where the substunce is tolerable the manner is invariably at fault . Martha Gibbs has paBsed through the ordeal successfully ; only one week more remains ; but she has seen Sir Arthur Lassels resolutely pursuing Lady Valeria with his attentions , and has drawn

    upon herself the suspicion of being in love with him , by the obstinacy with which she follows him about ¦ whenever he is with Lady Valeria . Sir Arthur being a coxcomb ( such a coxcomb ! ye gods ! such a seducer !) thinks she is jealous of Lady Valeria , ami telling her that the Lady has promised him a rendezvous , consents to renounce that if she , Martha , will grant him one . To save her friend bIic consents —• places Valeria in a hiding place , and receive * Sir Arthur . Valeria thus learns his villany , and

    forthwith resolves to bestow all her affection upon her husband—which is proper , virtuous , and conjugal of her ! But Martha thus risks her own happiness , lor the interview is made known , and nho is ordered to leavo the house , unworthy to be Stephen ' s wife . After a few handkvrchicfc are moistened here , all looks bright again by Valeria ' s confession of tho truth ; and ho tho " glittering" virtue of tho aristocracy in exposed in contrast with the sterling " gold " of . tho fuctory girl .

    It was immensely successful , if the purport of the drama be not to hold the mirror up to life , and reflect every form and pressure of the age , but rather to hold the mirror up to the stage , and reflect the very form and pressure given to it there , then I see no reason why every one should not pronounce All that Glitters is not Gold a chef d'oeuvre .

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    ST . MARTIN'S HALL . The third monthly concert of ancient and modern music , under tho direction of Mr . Ilullah , took place on Wednesday evening . The ancient music consisted of No . 4 of Handel ' s Hautboy Concertos and the " Frost Scene ' ' from Purcell ' s Kim / Arthur . Simply as studies and exponents of the instrumental music of the time , Mr . Ilullah does well in bringing forward these dry and laboured specimens , which may even have charms for Home antique minds ; but . beyond being curiosities in their way , we know of little to recommend them , amid those rich symphonies which evidence tho advanced Btato of tho art . Tho hautboy parta were , However , beautifully troutod

    by Messrs . Nicholson and Horton . Purcell ' s " Frost Scene "is . also an exponent of by-gone times , but the dramatic inspiration appearing throughout Purcell's writings makes them ever welcome . Mr . Henry Phillips delivered the bass solos magnificently . The efforts of Miss Kearns , who is a rising vocalist , were slightly marred by a carelessness of intonation . Our English female singers are sadly apt either to neglect precise intonation or to be wholly guiltless of declamatory force . Of the two , we would prefer the former , upon the principle that " a live dog is better than a dead lion ; " but there is no reason why declamatory force and precision of tone should not be found united .

    The modern music of the evening was Mendelssohn ' s First Walpurgis Night and four compositions by Charles Gounod , of Paris . The Walpurgis Night terminated the concert , and was , therefore , badly placed in the programme . It was admirably given : the solos being entrusted to Miss Kent , Mr . Lockey , and Mr . Phillips . The whole effort and interest of the evening had , however , been concentrated on the four compositions of Charles Gounod . We had heard much of his celebrity as a composer . We are much pleased to be introduced to the wokrs of young writers of our day , a thing far too infrequent for the interests of both art and artists . But with

    every disposition in favour of Mr . Gounod , we are bound to say that what we have yet heard will not ensure him a status above the level of mediocrity . He is essentially of the French school , but has seemingly endeavoured to redeem himself from its triviality of phrase by laboured passages which mean nothing and lead to nothing . We have , therefore , a continual promise of melody which as continually leads to disappointment : a great quantity of noise , but no breadth of harmony : an immense attempt , but no inspiration . The first chorus , " Libera me , Domine , " was from a Requiem . It is a series of

    progressive chords ; voices and instruments proceeding with a dull uniformity . An attempt is made to break from this by imitative instrumentation on the words " Quando coeli movendi sunt et terra , " but it almost immediately relapses into the uniform progression . There is , however , a religious tone pervading this isolated extract from the Requiem , which led us to desire some further acquaintance with the work . A motet , " Thou wilt content them , O Lord , " for two choirs , without accompaniment , followed . There is a nice phrase on the opening words , but the melody is almost instantly resigned , and the remainder of the motet is cramped and dry . A " Sanctus , " "Hosanna , " and "Benedictus , " followed , the first

    meeting withan encore . The " Sanctus" is given to the tenor solo , and each phrase is repeated by the chorus . On the words " gloria tua" there is a crescendo leading to a most theatrical crash on the " Hosanna in excelsis . " Here it is not only " great organ full to trumpet , " but " orchestra full to cymbals , " every instrument being employed but the gong and the triangle . We never remember to have heard so much noise in a concert-room . The idea—for there is , nevertheless , a manifest conception about thishas been to make it a very dramatic acena . The opening of the " Sanctus " is accompanied by a military style of instrumentation and the measured beat of the distant drum . This draws nearer and

    nearer , until we have the tremendous crash of the " Hosanna , " when the army of Heaven may be considered to be passing by . The " Benedictus . " is given to , the soprano , accompanied on the organ only , and repeated by the chorus , who again take up the " Hosanna" in fugue . We have here much of the disjointed phraseology of Le Prophiite ; but even amid the glitter of the Roman Catholic ceremonial , this " Sanctus " Would appear as if it came fresh from the opera—no great recommendation , in ecclesiastical music . The specimens concluded with a dramatic scene from a composition called " Peter the Hermit , " consisting of a bass solo , semi-chorus , and chorus . The choruses were not marked by any vein of originality ; but the bass solos , well rendered by Mr . Phillips , gave tho

    first taste of M . Gounod ' s melodic genius . In these we had energy and a melody which , declaimed by Henry Phillips , rejoiced the ear , but it was calculated also to confirm our impression that ML Gounod follows in that school which sacrifices the genius and germ of music—melody—mid nocks to produce effect upon the mind by cramped mid learned writing . No composition can exist without melody . It is the true fountain of inspiration , and the composer who would that his works should live must drink of it freely . M . Gounod , we understand , is young . We wouid advise him to leave France again , sojourn in Ituly , and return through Germany . After u careful study of the music of those countries , if he have any geniua at all , he may yet write that which will gain him a great name .

    The oxeeutancy of tho works throughout tho evening wan excellent . The whole chorus yield » i willing obedience to Mr . Hullah ' s baton , and we thus have u precision which onublcH him to give inoro real tiflect with his little corps than is produced by tho leviathan bodies of Exeter-hall .

    Untitled Article

    Jan . 18 , 1851 . ] ' ' Cft * 'fet «*'*« , ^ 67

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    THE OLD LOVE AND THE NEW . I have just come from Old Drury , where they have given a very pleasant vivacious comedy in five acts , oalled Old Love and the New , and am now to jot down my impressions , reserving to myself the power of modifying them next week , if reflection and a second visit show cause . In substance it is slight enough , and by no means new . Sir Algernon Courtoun , a battered old beau , is paying desperate court to Camilla Haythorn , a lively young flirt , who is making herself as fascinating to him as possible , for the very cogent reason that she is in love with his nephew and heir , Captain Sidney Courtoun . The misfortune is she makes herself too fascinating . But you can ' t wonder at that : Mrs . Nisbett is the Camilla ! Sir Algernon , blinded by his desires , lured by her coquetry , makes her an offer of his hand and acres . She rejects him—exasperates him—and now trembles for her own fate . To keep the truth from Sir Algernon that he has a rival in his nephew , Major Stock opportunely arrives , and is made a catspaw of . The embroglio is prolonged by a series of contrivances which are not always very clearly set forth ; but , as some amusing scenes are the result , the audience laugh and are not critical . Finally , it turns out that Sir Algernon , in the flushof youth , loved a g irl whom his parents would not suffer him to marry—that he has suffered great misery from it—and the recollection of his old love makes him lenient in his judgment of the new , and , forgiving Camilla , he consents to her marriage with his nephew . While , for himself , he falls back upon his old love , who turns up in the person of Miss Trimmer , an old maid , the pivot of the comedy , and its happiest character . Now , I must say that , with the best will in the world , I cannot see the substance of a five-act comedy in that ; and only some admirable invention in the details , or strength and variety in the characters , could mask its weakness . Unhappily , invention is not the author's forte ; nor has he more than a sketchy power in characterization . The construction of the piece is deficient in clearness , and the characters want " keeping . ' ' Thus Miss Trimmer starts as a real bit of character : an old maid always doing good and speaking unpleasant truths , giving her advice most liberally , but giving her money with equal generosity . We expected great things of her ; but instead of allowing the characters to shape the comedy , the author sufferB the incidents to shape the characters , and the originality of Miss Trimmer ' s part disappears into commonplace sentiment . Precisely the same occurs with Sir Algernon . We have him at the outset an old dandy—a lady-killer—and we have him at last a sorrowful old gentleman who has been thirty years seeking his only love—and whom , by the way , he does not recognize when he meets her . , not after several interviews : which in a love of thirty years seeins a little incredible ? Indeed , this love part between the two old people is the marshy-ground of the p iece—all , is swamped there . The acting ifras capital . Anderson , as Captain Sidney , played with great spirit and naturalness ; his bit of lover's' quarrel with Mrs . Nisbett was charming on both sides . Mrs . Nisbett was gay and laughing in a part written for her . ( My dear Mrs . Nisbett droop your head a little , push aside those curls , while 1 whinper just one word in your ear ? only one ! Nay , turn aside those eyes , or I shan't have the courage ! There , that will do ; now mark : young ladies do not array themselves in low dresses and short sleeves , with pink bows in their hair in the middle of the day—above all things , they shun rambling about a park in that cool costume !) Mrs . Tern an played Miss Trimmer with ladylike quietness and grout naturalness—it could not have been better . Mr . Barrett , an old Haythorn , was bluff and hearty , though conventional ; and Emery , Artaud , and Mrs . Walter Lacy did the moBt for their small parts . Mr . Cooper was sadly misplaced in a part suited for Farren ! The piece is mounted with just elegance and taste , and the succeas was complete .

• Citation
  • Leader (1850-1860), Jan. 18, 1851, page 67, in the Nineteenth-Century Serials Edition (2008; 2018) ncse-os.kdl.kcl.ac.uk/periodicals/l/issues/vm2-ncseproduct1866/page/19/