• TOTTENHAM STREET THEATRE.
PROPOSITION: The degree of amusement in a theatre is in inverse proportion to the outlay on painting and gilding, scenery and de- corations.
A lady in a modern novel is shrewdly made to remark; that her neighbours in Portland Place must keep an agreeable house ; for, adds she, I observe that they have a good many dinner guests who arrive in hackney-coaches. By a parity of induction, we infer a clever company in a theatre from the shabbiness of their house ; and the entertainment at the Tottenham confirms the favourable surmise drawn from the desolate aspect of the carpentry and upholstery. We can scarcely call to mind a more amusing trifle I ban Specula- tion, nor one more cleverly performed by those who have to support its humour. GATTIE'S Frenchman kept us in a roar of laughter. The dress, the action, the accent, the manner, were to the life the person intended to be described. GATTIE is indeed the only French- man on the stage. VINING is good in the part of a hairbrained scapegrace ; and a Mrs. BAILEY excellently enacted a house-letting lady,—her preon, demurely complaisant manner, and penetrating regard to the pocket, were admirably characteristic. The plot—which we do not describe, because we hate describing plots, and have an idea that nobody reads them—is at once simple and whimsical ; and we shy to those who desire to know more, go and see it. Some few years ago, we saw Mrs. WAYLETT at the Haymarket
Theatre, and were only struck by the flippancy of her style, and the pea- hen character of her vocal performance. We now see her at the Tottenham Theatre, an elegant woman, and accomplished comic actress. The flippancy has been softened into archness, and a piquancy of manner not surpassed, if equalled, by any performer of our time. She dresses perfectly too, and looks the woman of fashion, without seeming to think about the effect. As for her voice, though it is not precisely that of a nightingale, it has yet made great progress from the pea-hen tone and style ; and to say the least, it is well managed, and sufficiently pleasing for the sort of music introduced in farces.
Upon their Melo-drama of the Spectre Boat, we cannot compliment the Managers of the Theatre : it is written, as the bill gives out, by the author of Robert the Devil, who threatens to obtain as great a minor celebrity as WM. UPTON, Esq., and unquestionably seems to possess a shameless knack of stringing nonsenses together, and blowing the bladders of rhodomontade. The plot is from one of Scarfs novels, " with a difference ; " arid the Meg Merrilies of the piece, ElNy, rants most wearisomely. How any man can compose such trash as is put into the raving mouth of this character, is to us perfectly astonishing. The very ink with which he writes the rhodo- thontade, should turn red with shame. But all the poetasters rejoice in madness and the ravings of death, because where licence for non- sense begins, their genius is at home, and largely they avail them- selves of the opportunity.
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