610 THEATRICAL REVIEW. 



coat of Second cloth than an old one of superfine. So much for Mr. 

 Forrest. For the rest, Warde played "lago " better than we thought 

 he could have played any part at all, and especially in the speech, 



" Put money in thy purse," 



was excellent. Cooper was respectable in "Cassio" as he is in 

 every thing, though he seems to have studied drunkenness in the pur- 

 lieus of Drury, not among rakish gentlemen. Miss Taylor, in "Des- 

 demona," was, as usual, ridiculously affected ; and Miss Huddart 

 played " Emilia " with so much spirit that we actually forgot her 

 unfortunate lisp. 



Mr. Forrest has since played " Lear," and an old play, " Damon 

 and Pythias," has been revived for him. We will not, however, weary 

 our readers by any further criticisms, which would only consist of re- 

 petitions of what we have already said, modified by the different 

 situations and circumstances. 



A Mr. Hill, an American representative of the peculiarities of New 

 England, has met with deserved success. He made his debut in a 

 piece called " The Yankee Pedlar," which has no other merit than 

 that of serving as a vehicle for his acting. A Yankee clock pedlar 

 comes on the grounds of a Virginian planter, who has an antipathy 

 to his class, and threatens to shoot him if he does not quit his neigh- 

 bourhood. The fun of the piece consists in the expedients by which 

 the cunnring rogue outwits " Colonel Bantam," and first tricks him out 

 of a dinner and then sundry dollars. Mr. Hill has much quiet 

 humour, and when an English audience become more familiarized with 

 the nature of the class he represents, and who are to other Americans 

 what the canny Yorkshireman is to a south Britain, we have no doubt 

 he will be highly relished. As it was, he has no reason to complain 

 of his reception in the old country, which was " partiklar gracious 

 I reckon." 



November 8th. The lamented death of Malibran must have se- 

 riously deranged Mr. Bunn's arrangements for this season, the more 

 so that, counting upon her attractions, he had allowed the most va- 

 luable members of his corps dramatique to secede from his theatre, 

 and enter into engagements at the rival house. He has, however, 

 set about remedying the loss, and if he has not been able to do so we 

 are not to find fault with his exertions, but remember the limited 

 means placed at his disposal. 



With an operatic company, strong in mediocrity, but containing 

 no very distinguished talent, he has contrived to get up an opera re- 

 quiring very superior talent to give it due effect, in a manner which, 

 to say the least of it, is highly creditable to his industry, though we 

 do not anticipate a long run or an abundant flow of grist to the mill, 

 that is of cash to the treasury. 



The difficult task of adapting words to music already composed 

 was entrusted to Mr. Planche, and he has acquitted himself as well as 

 the circumstances would permit. The story of Byron's poem has been 

 strictly adhered to, but we are by no means advocates of the adapta- 

 tion of his inspirations for the stage. So far short must the play fall 

 of the original as to provoke comparisons which are not at all con- 

 ducive to the reputation either of the adapter or the adapted. 



