The new spectacle which supersedes the pantomime at the Adelphi,
entitled Satanas, or the Spirit of Beauty, surpasses all the former splen- dours of this wonder- working stage, in picturesque beauty. It is said to be a dramatic version of the famous French ballet Le Diable Amou- reux ; and the story, so far as the extraordinary metamorphoses and sudden transitions would allow us to follow its thread, is a sort of com- pound of " Faustus" and " Robert, the Devil," with a sprinkling of " Lurline" and the " Daughter of the Danube." Count Fabio is tempted by Satanas, the master-fiend, who takes possession of his vener- able tutor, and by the Spirit of Beauty, who appears in the guise of a page ; their fascinations and machinations being aided by an Imp of Mischief. Against such formidable odds the mortal has no chance ; and Count Fabio, having lost his possessions at play, pawns his soul to Satanas ; but the Spirit of Beauty having taken a fancy to the Count, destroys the bond, and he is transferred from the " Regions of Remorse " to the " Habitations of Happiness." Mrs. HONEY appears alternately as the Spirit of Beauty and the Damon Page ; 0. SMITH puzzles his pupil by reversing all his former moral lessons—which seem to hive had no effect, by the way— and perplexes the audience by his twofold state of existence ; and WIELAND, the Imp of Mischief, covers his sooty skin with a slashed doublet, though he gives proof of his caloric nature by preferring the fire-place to a fauteuil, and when he is asked for his card, conjuring up a row of huge red letters, spelling the name " Flicto." WIELAND'S antics in making love to Mrs. KEELEY, and his game at cribbage with her for no less a stake than her soul, are unearthly ; and WRIGHT as her mortal lover is very droll. BEDFORD is prodigious as an old cadi passing in review a bevy of beautiful slaves, with YATES for his ad- viser, who takes up the burden of his song, " I am an amorous cadi," with comical gusto. Miss FORTESCUE is charming as a little innocent peasant-girl ; and the galaxy of beauties, mortal and spiritual, is dazzling beyond precedent. The opening scene, a lake with fountains " shaking their loosening silver in the sun," and naiads disporting, the groves around disclosing clusters of wood-nymphs, is of extraordinary beauty ; and the closing one where the angelic phalanx armed with flaming swords drive back the daemon host, is remarkable for an ingenious contrivance by which living forms appear to revolve in a halo of glory. The numerous transformations, scenic and personal, are capitally mana,ged ; and the stage-effects are surprising for so small a theatre. The first night's representation was too long, but that has doubtless been re- medied by this time. There was great delay in drawing up the curtain ; which made the audience angry, and the performance was interrupted till YATES appeared: he, indeed, instead of pouring oil on the troubled waters, got into a passion ; but the spectacle soon restored harmony. Our visit to the Adelphi gave us an opportunity of seeing Agnes St. Aubyn. We hardly know which to admire most, the neat and ingenious structure of the piece, or the perfect acting of all the parts. It is evi- dently from the French, and has escaped being injured in the process of adapting ; while each character appears to have been drawn to suit the peculiar talent of the performers, so complete is the personation in every respect. The exits and entrances of the different persons have some purpose connected with the progress of the action ; the situations, in themselves highly dramatic in their effect, are brought about by natural means ; and the interest never flags, but keeps increasing; the dilemma in which all parties are placed becomes more critical, till the acci- dental but probable death of the villain who causes the perplexity clears up the mystery. The skill with which the fable and action of French dramas are put together is the grand secret of their success : the lightest vaudevilles are remarkable for the art of their construction ; and this perfection probably results from the necessity of so contriving the plot that it may be developed in one or two scenes. People may laugh at the idea of preserving the " unities," but it has a material influence in concentrating and quickening the action. 0. Smrrn's performance of the hardened ruffian Doligny is a finished study of guilty desperation, in its various moods of dogged brutality, exulting levity, and reckless abandonment. One may trace on his countenance, in the interview with his wife, the emotions caused by an awakened sense of shame, as if you read his conscience : the blank, uneasy, reckless eye—the lip now curled with insolent scorn, then relaxing into sullenness, and presently compressed with vindictive fury—bespeak what is passing within, though he utters not a word the while.
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