22 FEBRUARY 1845, Page 12

A glittering piece of absurdity, almost too puerile for a

minor stage, has been produced at Covent Garden, under the title of Shadows on the Water: but it had not such a novel piece of scenic effect as that to give variety and character to the spectacle. It is called "a Chinese drama": and therefore the stage was thronged with groups in shawl-pattern dresses, whose speech and movements were as ridiculous and silly as the words they uttered. Some brightly-coloured and gilded scenery, by Mr. Macfarren, and some clever dancing, saved the piece from summary condemnation.