t4ratrts an Muir.
The brilliant success which attended the reopening of Her Majesty's Theatre on Saturday was the more interesting from the circumstance that it belonged not so much to the performance of that particular night as to the "institution" itself. That the Cenerentola is a favourite opera, and that Alboni is a fascinating vocalist, we all knew well enough ; but neither the popularity of the opera nor the fame of the singer would altogether account for such an exhibition as took place within the old walls on Saturday night. People went to see the revival, with all its contingencies, as a definite sight--to see how the grand edifice looked after three years' vacuity—to revive their impressions of the horse-shoe form in which such masses of brilliancy and beauty have so often been ranged—to witness(we do not say to hear) the sing- ing of the national anthem, and view the universal rising which fills up those golden-coloured picture-frames. Certainly it is long since such an assemblage was gathered together. A glow of satisfaction was dif- fused over all countenances. Everybody was pleased with everything —with the performance on the stage—with the perfectly unaltered con- dition of the house—with the recognition of old acquaintances. Indeed everybody had come on purpose to be pleased, and that was an excel- lent basis to begin upon. La Cenerentola is an opera on which little is to be said at this time of day in the way of criticism. It is in Rossini's earliest manner, when his vein was essentially comic, and when he wrote in the light, florid, ornate style of the Guglielmis and Cimarosas, his immediate precursors. Music in that day, for every description of voice, was full of prolonged phrases of rapid divisions, demanding that clear and rounded articulation which could be acquired only by a high degree of vocal cultivation, not generally found among the singers of a later period. Mario has one of the -finest voices in the world, but he cannot do with it what was done before him by Rubini, the most finished singer who has lived in our time. But Rubim was a disciple of the pure old Italian school ; whereas Mario, —originally a noble amateur singing for his amusement, who made his early debut in French opera on the Parisian stage, and has since been singing all sorts of music, Italian, French, and German — though endowed with the' most precious gifts of nature, can hardly be said to be of any school. We still have, nevertheless, singers among us whose studies have been purely Italian, and who have ac- quired that vocal finish which is becoming less and less common, and 'which the ascendancy of Meyerbeer and Verdi threatens to destroy alto- gether. Among- these are three members of Mr. Lumley's company, Alboni, Calzolari, and Belletti ; who are thorough "Itossiruan " singers, and on this occasion were united in the cast of the Cenerentola. Bel- letti, through the accident of indisposition, was unable to appear, but he is known to be a first-rate Dandini Alboni as Angelina is still better known : she is very little changed since her last appearance in London —only a little stouter ; and she delighted the audience by the simplicity of her acting, her rich contralto tones, with augmented power in the upper region of her extensive scale, and not least, her perfect execution. "Calzolari, a valuable member of the company before Her Majesty's Theatre closed, is still more valuable now. The interval, we under- stand, has been passed in Italy, and with evident progress. His style and execution have received a finer polish, and even the quality of his voice is improved—for the voice as well as any other gift may benefit by cultivation. Beneventano, who at short notice took Belletti's place, was unfitted by his person for the light bustling part of Dandini ; but his good will gained him favour, and his performance was respectable. .Zucooni, the new basso, was found wanting in voice, but his acting in Don Magnifico was not destitute of humour. The little parts of the two sisters were sustained, better than usual, by Mesdemoiselles Berti and Rizzi, who sang the concerted music very nicely.
The new orchestra is large, complete, and well-balanced. The indi- vidual performers appear to be masters of their instruments, and collec- tively they are in a state of excellent discipline, under Signor Bonetti, an able and experienced conductor. They played with power and effect, and accompanied the singers in a delicate and subdued manner, which unfortunately is rare in great musical theatres.
After the conclusion of the opera, and the execution of the national anthem with that demonstration on the part of the audience which is Attainable at no other house, a hearty call was raised for Mr. Lumlgi. who made his appearance accordingly. This was as it should be.
revival of the old theatre without Mr. Lumley would have been rather a galvanic action than a genuine resuscitation.
The Barbiere di Siviglia was produced on Tuesday, with Alboni and Calzolari as Rosina and Count Almaviva and Belletti as Figaro. The performance was still more attractive than that of the Cenerentola. Be- tween the dramatic merits of the two pieces there is no comparison; and in regard to its music, the Barbiere is the most highly-wrought and bril- liant of all Rossini's early works. Alboni's Rosina was a pleasant piece of acting, and she sang with wondrous beauty. Calzolari played the -Count with ease and spirit ; and, though his voice seemed a little affected -by the weather, sang the Rossinian fioriture with admirable articulation -and lightness. As to Belletti, he is simply the best Figaro on the stage. There only wanted Lablache to make the quartet complete; for there is but one Bartok) and every other must be more or lees a failure. Signor Zucconi has good intentions, but he wants the means to bring them out.
The ballet, which never held a very important position at the Covent Garden Opera, revives with such freshness from its long slumber that
we suspect the repose has been beneficial. Of all the Muses, Terpsichore gave signs, a few years ago, of being the most fatigue°. The Cerito mania, and the crowd of choregraphic talent which was its cause or its re- sult, reached that degree of fever to which apathy was the necessary re- action, especially when several of the stars who had shone in the galaxy were fairly set. The ballet could not thrive without an idol ; and with all the glories of the constituents of the pas de quatre still in the public mind, idolatry was not easily to be established by the elevation of any new divinity of dance. Four new danscuses, unknown to fame, would scarcely have had a chance of making a strong expression in the year 1852, whatever might have been their individual merit. But now the ballet is in itself a new thing; and the . four young- ladies who made their debut in an allegorical divertissement entitled Lea Quatre Samna had this advantage, that their performance could be tested simply by the amount of pleasure produced, without reference to any former ideal as a standard. They are all excellent, each in a separate style ; but at pre- sent we incline to give the palm to Mademoiselle Katnne, a Russian by birth, whose school has more of bright art about it than that of any of her competitors. Mesdemoiselles Boschetti and Liscreux are neat and sparkling ; Madame Albert Bellon is languishing and sentimental; but Mademoiselle Katrine is grand and commanding, soaring over terra firma as if the air were her proper clement.
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