glitatrt5 110 Rusit.
The week now terminating is utterly deficient in theatrical novelty. Probably the next production of importance will be a new comedy by Mr. Tom Taylor, already announced in the bills of the Olympic.
PARISIAN Taesarniceas.
Dramatic " decentralization," as it is called, has been making progress this year, the provincial theatres vying with Paris in the production of novelties to an extent never before known. Of course, M. Alexandre Dumas, who brought out his Gardes Forestiors at Marseilles, is placed at the head of the innovators. At Strasburg a young musician recently came forward with his maiden opera, and a similar experiment has been made at Rennes, Liege, and Lille. However, the managers of Paris are not seriously alarmed, but regard the movement rather as a passing freak than as the sign of a literary revolution. Zealous as ever in the cause of dramatic legitimacy, the manager of the Odeon has brought out L'Ecok des .Menages, a new comedy by M. Arthur de Beauplan, composed in verse and divided into five acts, ac- cording to the good old rule. The subject is of a kind that an English public would consider infinitely disgusting. A gentleman, aged about five and thirty, has for ten years been carrying on a dishonourable intrigue with the wife of an unsuspecting friend, who selects him as a husband for his daughter. Here arises a false position which results in an abandonment of the project of marriage, the only person obviously punished being the innocent girl, who is deeply in, love with her in- tended bridegroom. But then we are to reflect that the sufferings of the daughter will rend the heart of the guilty mother, and are expected to ar- rive at the conclusion, that the latter, although indirectly, is the more severely punished of the two. On Wednesday last Madame Ristori, who is still at the Italiens," achieved an immense success by playing the principal character in an Italian version of the _Madre of Racine. She had already acted this great part in other cities, but had abstained from attempting it at Paris, during the life-time of Mademoiselle Rachel, with whom it had long been identified.
The Nosse di Figaro of Mozart has been brought out in French at the Theatre Lyrique.
The aggregate receipts of the places of public amusement in Paris during the month of April amount to 1,232,664f. 75c., which is 22,292f. 15c. less than the receipts of March.
Her Majesty's Theatre, last Tuesday evening, furnished as rich a feast of dramatic music as the opera stage can give ; Don Giovanni, re- produced in the complete, and careful style of last season, with the ad- dition of Mademoiselle Titiens in the character of Donna Anna. In this part our new prima donna has first enabled the English public to esti- mate fully her qualities as a singer of the pure German school. The Huguenots showed her to be one of the greatest tragedians of the age ; and so, in a lesser degree, did the Trovatore. But Meyerbeer's music is neither Italian, French, nor German, but a compound of all, in which the different elements are often very incongruously mixed : while the music of Verdi is in the garish, violent, voice-destroying, degenerate Italian style of the present time, so unlike that of former days, when the Cimarosas and Paesiellos enchanted the world by the smoothness, grace, and simplicity of their melodies. In both her previous operas, therefore, especially the latter, Titiens was placed at disadvantage. But the music of Moult is thoroughly congenial to her in every respect. He war German to the core : yet, preserving the purity of the German '""4. VA: iialisued composifiona. with btatity. Titiens, in like manner, is a tree German; but eittrme lte:gifted her with an Italian voice—a voice which breathes of " the sun a:y south" ; and thus she is able to unite the severity and purity of the German with the grace and richness of the Italian style. One great feature of the German school is the veneration which it teaches towards the great masters of the art. True German singers are incapable of tampering with the mlisic of Mozart . they preserve its beauties in all their native simplicity. Thus the part of Donna Anna was sung by Titiens ; she neither added nor altered a single note ; but every phrase of Mozart's exquisite melody was faithfully uttered as he wrote it, with no other ornament than beautiful tones, finished execution, and the most truthful and pathetic expression. Mer singing, in short, was beauty, when unadorned? adorn'd the most." the character of Donna Anna, lofty, melancholy, and impassioned, is akin to tragedy ; and Titiens, essentially a tragedian, appeared to us to realize Mozart's own conceptions more completely than any actress we have ever seen. Her merits were thoroughly felt and appreciated by the vast audience who crowded every part of Use theatre ; and Donna Anna, as we had anticipated, gave her the greatest of her triumphs. Au reste, the performance of the opera was exactly similar to that of last year. The hero of the pica was personated ley Teneventano indifferently well; but since Tamburiai, we have seen no ade- quate representative of the brilliant reprobate, and we have but faint hopes of ever seeing another. Zerlina is one of Paccolomini's best parts. She lboks the pretty little country girl to the life, sings the simple music of. Ole part with much grace and sweetness, and shows considerable originality in her conception of the character. Ortolani's Elvira is one of „the best we have seen. She is an intelligent actress, and a good musician ; and lacks nothing but a richer quality of voice. Belletti's performancoaa Leporello is very artistic. He gives a capital picture ofithe sharp, clever knave ; but a little of Lablache's broad genial humour would make the part more entertaining. The light, comic character. of the. man is in- tended to relieve the atrocities of the master. In the insignificant part of Ottavio, the most lackadaisical of lovers, Giuglini sings beautifully; which is all that anybody can do. Altogether, the manner in which this opera of operas is got up and performed, does great honour to Her Ma- jesty's Theatre.
Drury Lane Theatre has been opened as a cheap Italian. Opera.'" or the people." Not many years ago the Italian Opera was a fashionable exotic in this country, while our own National Opera had a "local habi- tation" as well as a name." Now it has neither ; while the three greattet theatres in London are Italian opera-houses--a strange fact, not ,easaly accounted for. Mr. Lumley'a low-priced operas at Her Majesty's Thea- tre may have had some effect inieading to this Drury Lane speculatiout Be that as it may, the speculation promises to thrive. The house opened on Monday, at rates of admission low beyond precedent ; the Trovatare was performed to a crowded and applauding audience; and during the week the influx has been increasing. The entertainment is very credita- ble. The principal performers have been eminent in their day. Madame Donatelli has had parts in favourite operas written expressly for her ; Badiali was long a baritone of renown ; Madame Bernardi is still a .con- tralto who might appear in any theatre ; and Madame Gassier is well known as a favourite of our public. Such performers, even when their vocal powers are decayed, do not-lose their style : and it isnot surprising that the entertainment should gratify the multitudes who nightly flock to Drury Lane.
This has been a week of great pianists. At the Philharmonic Conceit on Monday, Halle played Beethoven's concerto in E flat, in that pure classical style, and with that faithful and vigorous interpretation of the composer's ideas, which have made him such a favourite of our public. At the Musical Union on Tuesday, Rubinstein, the young Russian per- former who made so great a sensation here last season, again made his appearance, and played , a trio of Beethoven and some smaller moreeaux of his own. About his compositions there is much difference of opinion ; but there can be no doubt that he is one of the greatest pianists living. On Monday morning, a performance was given Madame Szarvarly, who, under her maiden name of Wilhelmina Clause, delighted our ama- teurs four years ago. She has gained much additional power, while eke preserves the exquisite delicacy and finish which gave such a charreete her playing. And lastly, Arabella Goddard, the English pianist par ex- cellence, gave her concluding soiree at Willis's Rooms on Wednesday, The pianoforte never was so highly and so generally cultivated as now.
young violinist, Herr Jean Joseph Bott, appeared at the last Phil- harmonic Concert. He is the favourite pupil of Spohr, and not un- worthy of the distinction. His tone has not, apparently, as yet reached its full strength; but, in one of his master's concertos, he showed that refinement and purity of style and expression which used to characterise Spohr's own playing. It will interest our musical readers to learn that Joachim, the greatest violinist since Paganini, is again engaged by Ow Philharmonic bociety, for their next concert on Monday week,
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