316, 



Monthly Theatrical Report. 



[MARCH, 



so idly fastidious as to depreciate the efforts 

 of the few who continue to adapt, compile, 

 and translate for the stage the three present 

 and paramount operations of theatrical au- 

 thorship. The " Merchant's Wedding" is 

 arranged by Planche, whose skill in these 

 matters has already displayed itself in seve- 

 ral successful performances. The weight of 

 popularity falls to the characters sustained 

 by diaries Kemble, as the rout, who mar- 

 ries the heiress ; and that of the bride, whom 

 -Uiss ( h ester represents with all the airs and 

 graces of shewy coquetry. But the plot is 

 feeble ; and the incidents, though suitable 

 to their time, are few and coarse. The 

 principal contrivance to induce the heiress's 

 acknowledgment of her feelings, is founded 

 on the probable loss of her reputation. The 

 compiler touched the verge of ruin in exhi- 

 biting this trait of the manners of our an- 

 cestry. The audience shrank from the sin- 

 gularity of a lover's disrobing himself in his 

 mistress's toilet ; and but for the conviction 

 that Charles Kemble had too much taste to 

 disregard public opinion in the scene, to 

 the extent of the original, the play would 

 have been driven from the stage. Miss 

 Chester played with her usual interest ; but 

 the heroine requires more force. 



The "Somnambulist," a melodrame from 

 the French, exhibited Miss Kelly in that 

 style of drama in which she has no rival. 

 The fair sleeper has been abjured by her 

 lover, on suspicion of faithlessness to her 

 fane. But she walks and talks him into a 

 conviction that he knew nothing about the 

 matter climbs roofs, and moves over 

 crumbling walls until he has not a doubt 

 upon his mind ; and the moment that he 

 finds she has reached the ground without 

 breaking a bone, he falls on his knees, 

 weeps, and offers marriage like a French- 

 man. 



. A German tragedy, translated into an 

 English melodrame retaining, however, 

 the name of a tragedy gave one more in- 

 stance to the thousand, that, whatever Eng- 

 land may be able to export to the foreign stage, 

 she can import no tragedy. The present 

 one, entitled the "Serf," turns upon the 

 Russian custom of slavery. The illegitimate 

 son of a noble is left to become the slave of 

 his legitimate brother, who is a tyrant, and 

 in love with the woman who is in love with 

 the Serf. To prohibit the passion, he re- 

 fuses his brother the record of his freedom, 

 and goes the length of ordering him to ap- 

 pear as a livery-servant in the presence of 

 the lady. How any human being, under the 

 circumstances of his passion and provoca- 

 tion, could have tamely submitted to this 

 unbrotherly taunt, is beyond our knowledge 

 of human nature. But, certainly, we might 

 be justified in pronouncing him not of the 

 species that captivates the favour of the fair. 

 Slavery must have been thoroughly ground 

 into any one who would not have refused, or 

 rebelled, or at least ran away. But the 

 hero, after growling a little, puts on the 



livery, and waits at the chair of his brother. 

 They finally quarrel, draw their swords, and 

 die on the same green baize. The transla- 

 tion was said to be by Lord Normanby ; 

 but has since been acknowledged by a Mr. 

 Talbot. It has some good language, and 

 there have been worse things d-mn-d. 



Peake, who has palpably taken O'Keefe 

 for his Shakspeare, has produced a lively 

 capricio the " Haunted Inn," a farce. 

 The waiter of a country inn wishing to be- 

 come its landlord, personates a ghost, to 

 frighten the old landlord and his wife out of 

 the premises. The part is Listen's, and, of 

 course, very pleasantly played. Captain 

 Levant, a young rake, hiding from his cre- 

 ditors, who are in full pursuit, is run so 

 close, that he is compelled to change clothes 

 with Corporal Trot. Jones is Levant, and 

 lively as usual. Matthews is the Corporal, 

 and perfectly the corporal. They separate, 

 and Levant makes his way to the inn, where 

 the old people offer him his supper, in the 

 idea of his protecting them from the ghost. 

 Listen makes his appearance, in sheets and 

 chains, at midnight: Jones detects, and 

 flogs him too, with more of reality than the 

 stage generally authorizes. The ghost is all 

 obsequiousness ; and Levant thenceforth or- 

 ders him to do all kinds of things, by a signi- 

 ficant gesture of the hanging, which he avers 

 to be the necessary consequence of the fraud. 



Corporal Trot has made his way to the 

 house of a Baronet, where Levant was ex- 

 pected as the son of an old friend, and a 

 future son-in-law. The Baronet receives 

 the Corporal with open arms ; and, how- 

 ever surprised at his manners, accounts for 

 them by the peculiarities of the rising gene- 

 ration. The young lady is still more sur- 

 prised to see the Corporal act the battle of 

 Waterloo, by throwing the breakfast-rolls, 

 &c. about the room. This is one of the 

 worst exaggerations of the farce, and is alto- 

 gether puerile and improbable. At last, 

 Levant appears, the lady and all are recon- 

 ciled, understand each other, are happy, and 

 are married the waiter alone excepted,who 

 yet gains the inn, without being hanged for 

 its purchase. 



" Juan's Early Days," an extravaganza, 

 from the first part of Lord Byron's poem, 

 has been produced with some popularity. 

 The subject is playful; and Miss Love, as 

 the hero, plays it with spirit. Miss E. Tree 

 is Haidee, and is suited to the character by 

 her grace and animation. Some of the 

 scenery is pretty ; the dresses, and particu- 

 larly that of Lambro the pirate, are hand- 

 some ; and, on the whole, with the addition 

 of some better and more characteristic mu- 

 sic for the hackneyed air of "Isabel" is the 

 only pretty one in die piece is worth going 

 to see. 



The Oratorios have begun, and much may 

 be expected from the skill of Bishop, their 

 director. Btit hitherto nothing new has 

 been performed. 



The Adclphi is filled with its unfailing 



