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860 THE LEADER, ["No. 337, Satukdat,
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'PIZARRO' AT THE PRINCESS'S. Mr. Kean is...
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CLOSE OF THE MONT BLANC SEASON". The mor...
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- AUTUMN LEAVES. London is now, accordin...
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Note: This text has been automatically extracted via Optical Character Recognition (OCR) software. The text has not been manually corrected and should not be relied on to be an accurate representation of the item.
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860 The Leader, ["No. 337, Satukdat,
860 THE LEADER , [" No . 337 , Satukdat ,
. ($E≫It£ !M,Rfs? «/^| * X'H'+Ai * ?- - -
Mist Mb . :
'Pizarro' At The Princess's. Mr. Kean Is...
' PIZARRO' AT THE PRINCESS'S . Mr . Kean is certainly the prince of theatrical antiquaries . He seems determined to illustrate every period of history and every nation under the sun . Assyria , mediaeval England , ancient Greece , Sicily , Bithynia , early Scotland , and modern France , having been in turn exhausted , the enterprizing shovcrnan of Oxford-street has turned his attention to the New World , and has ' reproduced , ' as the plirase is , the life , dresses , architecture , and customs of the natives of Peru at the time -when the fierce Spaniard , Pizabro , shattered their gorgeous theocracy , ruined the golden splendours of their temples and their mystical gardens , and rendered them , at this comparatively close epoch , far more obscure and dreamlike than the remote Greeks of the ancient world , or even than the Egyptians and Hindus . Our readers are aware that we-Slave
always objected to the disrespectful treatment of Shakspeake implied in burying bis creations beneath a weight of spectacle ; but we have little to complain of on that score in connexion with Sheridan ' s translation of Kotzebue's Spani & rds in Peru . Originally written as apiece He circonstanoe , it will now serve very well as a vehicle for show , without the aid of which it would probably never have been revived . When it was originally produced , more than half a century ago , at Sheridan ' s own theatre , it was designed to typify , in the valorous patriotism of Rolla and his Peruvians , the determination of the -universal British "Volunteer to die on the altars and hearths of his fathers ( that , we believe , is the right language ) , rather than submit to the threatened invasion from France ; in the same way that Abdisos ' s Goto vas intended to shadow forth the resistance of the
Whigs of that day to the designs of the reactionary Tories and adherents of the Pretender . The loyal Briton of fifty years back applauded the covert ' true blue * sentiments of Pizarra , and the piece was a decided success , though produced under the most disadvantageous circumstances . Sheridan , with his usual indolence , delayed finishing the play till it vras found absolutely necessary to produce it « rafinished ; and the choruses actually sang their hymns without any words , making up for the want by a judicious employment of' ri-toV There is al ' so an amazing myth , to the effect that the -words to be spoken in the last few scenes were not . written , or translated , till after the play had begun ; that they were then scribbled off as-quickly as possible on little slips of paper , and that the actors and actresses learnt them as best they could . But we do not vouch for this green-room legend .
The reproduction on Monday night was as great a success , only on other grounds , as that which attended the first production . The scenery , dresses , and effects , are of the most gorgeous kind . For the sake of adding to these , there is an interpolated scene , representing the Great Square of the city of Cuzco during the festival of Ravmi . To build up the splendours here unfolded to the spectator to their greatest height , no pains have been spared to search . Mr . Prescott from title-page to colophon ; and Makco CAPAc , the first of the Incas , if he could be induced to come down from his home in the sun , and take a stall at the Princess ' s , might fancy himself back in his adopted land . We cannot do better than repeat the description of this scene given by the eloquent critic of the Times V—
" The stage is completely filled with a multitude of Peruvians , attired in gorgeous and fantastic dresses , who greet the sun as he gradually appears above the horizon , tinting the summits of the edifices , first with red , then with white , till the whole scene becomes one blaze of lustre , sparkling from innumerable golden implements and jewelled garments . A dance by girls dressed as Peruvian warriors will bear comparison with the Pyrrhic dance in tlie Winter ' s Tale ; and for the Dionysian festival in ! Bithynia we may almost find a parallel in the riotous leaping with which tlie ceremony concludes , and which is rendered more strange by the heads of brutes placed on
some of the figures . The landscapes are as beautiful in their kind as these representations of Peruvian pageantry . The ' Gardens of the Royal Palace , ' in -which the foremost beds are set with golden plants , shaded by golden trees , slope up a 3 iill-sido in most picturesque diversity . The mountainous scene in -which , holla effects the rescue of the child is a masterpiece of rock "and tcrrent , and , moreover , allows a terrific leap across a chasm to be substituted for the traditional run across a bridge . Nor are the European peculiarities less studied than those of Peru . The old firelock and the steel cap recal a class of warriors very different from those conventional Spaniards ¦ who so long held possession of the stage . "
Rolla is performed by Mr . Kean , Pizarro by Mr . Ryder , Orozemlo by Mr-Cooper , Elvira by Mrs . Kean , and Cora by Miss Heath . The child , we may add , is a real child , and not a wax doll . Some of the dialogue is omitted , and so is the death of Pizarro , for the sake of historical truth . It is perhaps needless to add that the revival was a complete success .
Close Of The Mont Blanc Season". The Mor...
CLOSE OF THE MONT BLANC SEASON " . The morning papers , a few days ago , contained the . awful announcement' Mont Blanc has Closed . ' Messrs . Brown , Jones , and Itobinson , who at this season of the year are fond of scrambling up tlie sides of tho mountain monarch ( sometimes taking with them Mrs . and Miss Brown , Jones , and Robinson)—of peering with their Cockney noses down tho crevasses , sporting their Cockney ftliooting-jaeketa and -wide-awakes on the Grands Mulcts , and sputtering their Cockney Erench on the Mer do Glace—these enterprising tourists must have been startled at first on seeing tlie notification , and must have feared that the monarch , offended nt such free-find-easy company , had shut the doors of his c 6 urt for over against confederated Cocknoydom . But no doubt they soon recollected that there arc two Mont Blnncs in tho world-one in Switzerland , tho other in l 1 C cadlll y--tho latter of which is only on view through about half tho fv u . T ? w * t flve ycar 8 » indeed , Mont Blang has been one of tho established sights of London- ™ metropolitan as the British Museom , and much
more visited . But the guide who conducts us to the summit—laughing , singinjr and telling endless stories , all the way—is as subject to our mortal needs as the dullest of us ; and , in plain language , Mr . Albert Smith at this time of year finds it necessary to get a little rest , and to gather fresh strength and fresh ideas from a new route to the wonderful mountain- So , last Saturday eveninghe went through , his performance for the fourteen hundred and eighty-second ' time , and then dismissed his audience from further attendance in a speech -which ran tins : — "And now , Ladies and Gentlemen , as the monarch of mountains is unable to leave histhtone of rocks at present , from the pressure of tourists and excursionists I am compelled to prorogue his parliament , by deputy , myself ; and I will , therefore , according to established form , read my speech , 1 hope 'in that clear and distinct voice" the reporters usually connect with that ceremony .
. " My Lords , Ladies , and Gentlemen , —The period having , arrived when you require some relaxation from the incessant labour and fatigue you must have undergone during : the past session , from hearing me tell the , same long story , over and over again , I feel a few words are due from me to you , not only respecting the present but the future . _ ' 111 continue to receive the most friendly assurances from foreign powers , on my passport , of ' permission to pass freety , and aid and protection in ease of need , ' of which I am about immediately to avail myself , as I hope , for your future amusement . His Majesty the King of the Belgians has by his consulate visa placed the ; travelling resources of his charming country at my disposal , in accordance with the treaty of fares laid down in the Continental BradsJiqw . His Majesty the King of Prussia has throTvn open the navigation of the Rhine to me , subject simply to an adherence to the tariff of prices between Cologne and Mayence , as issued by the Kolnische Gesellscbafft Company ; and our gallant ally , the King of Sardinia , has granted me permission to cross the Alps , between Switzerland and Piedmont , b y any pass between the Col du . Bonhomme and the Simplon practicable for troops—of tourists .
" The gambling-tables at Baden will occupy my extreme attention 5 and the still helpless and lamentable s'tate of Brown , everywhere on the Continent , calls for the most earnest measures to alleviate those miseries winch cloud his tour , and turn his holiday into a prolonged excursion of imaginary extortion , self-created irritation , disappointed anticipation , and misunderstood behaviour . " Ladies and Gentlemen of the Area and Gallery , —I have directed supplies of fresh seats to be laid under you before we next meet . Considering that the absolute comfort of tlie public is the very first thing that ought to be attended to in any resort intended for , and supported by them , without the compulsion of ah extra payment—that the
miserable system of extorting every extractable sixpence from the audience , by the combined agencies of boxkeepers , box book-keepers , bill-sellers , and saloon-keepers ( in-whose toils our managers appear to be so hopelessly entangled ) , is a shame and a disgrace to our public places of amusement—considering this , I shall still endeavour to improve your condition and prospects ; your condition , as far as your individual ease is concerned ; your prospects , as may relate to a clear , comfortable view of everything that is going on- As heretofore , every reasonable complaint or suggestion will receive my best and readiest attention ; and as heretofore , the price of admission will include every possible auxiliary to comfort and accommodation , that the room or the attendants can offer . '
"M y Lords , Ladies and Gentlemen ,- —Having had the honour of telling you the same story inthe same room fourteen hundred and eighty-two limes up to this evening ; , I will not venture to refer to it , for you must know it almost as well as I Jo . Bui you must permit me to add , that I now release you from your flattering attention until the middle of November , when I return from , the Continent . And , until that time , wishing you every possible enjoyment and happiness that you most desire yourselves , 1 bid you , very gratefully , good-by . " . " . ' ¦ ¦ ¦ .
- Autumn Leaves. London Is Now, Accordin...
- AUTUMN LEAVES . London is now , according to the fashionable census , ' quite empty ; ' that is to say some , few thousand persons having gone out of town , the remaining two million and upwards of ' mechanical , salt-butter rogues' must be politely regarded as a vacuum . " Truth to tell , at this time of year , the said vacuum finds a great vacuity in the matter of amusement ; but this year such lias hardly been the case . Several theatres are still open—the late Autumn Leaves , surviving the gaudy summer . The Princess ' s , as we have just seen , has reproduced Pizarro ; at the HAimarket , Messrs . Buckstone and Co . continue to discourse on Second Love , and the Spanish Dancers to expound the mysteries of Terpsichoreanlove ; Mr . and Mrs . Barney Williams arc still unctuous and volatile at the Adewhi
in their Irish and Yankee portraitures ; Kobson yet goes through his marvellous peformance of Medea nt tho Olympic ; and at Astley ' s you may see Richard III on horseback , with " t !; e death of the king's charger ' White Surrey , ' and the fiill of Richard on tlie battle-field , " warranted to " produce a perfect furore" if you are fond of that excitement . As for the future , there is the Lvceusi about to open , under the management of Mr . Dillon ; and the Sono Theatre is to inaugurate a season next Monday with the WinUr ' s Tale . Had the Londoner last week chosen to leave London and go to Bradford , he might have been present at the Musical festival , where he would have heard tlie best of performers executing the best creations of the best composers ; and tlie sitmo may be said of another melodious festival hold during the present week at Birmingham , where a magnificent new Music Hall was inaugurated in the inidst of " " pomp and threatening harmony . "
But not to travel so far , we have had at the Haymakkkt this week a novelty in the shape of ' a young lady' without a name , who made her first appearance in the difficult part of Rosalind in As You Lika It . Wo have not yet seen this fair mystery , and . cannot therefore pretend to criticize her ; but report speaks of aome good points in her acting , together with some short-comings . She was very favourably received . Then , for tho present time , and for all time , there is the Crystal . Palace , and there arc the waterworks , of which anothcrgrand display took placo last Sutur-( lnj r . " Tho sun looked out with a smile , " and tho water smiled back at him ; and there , with the solid crystal of tho Palace for a background , the ever-shifting columns and vapoury phantasmagoria of fluent silver rose and fella cloud , a smoke , a brilliance , an obscurity , a foam-world of sparkling visions , a shower of jewellery , brighter than the rnin 1 > ow that mocked it , the common element of water , and yet the most glorious of mysteries . Assuredly , those nonentities who fill the emptiness oCLondon at tliis time of yenr have got something to look at that is worth the seeing , if they vill go forth to tho green slopes of Sydenham .
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Citation
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Leader (1850-1860), Sept. 6, 1856, page 20, in the Nineteenth-Century Serials Edition (2008; 2018) ncse.ac.uk/periodicals/l/issues/cld_06091856/page/20/
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