538 



Monthly Theatrical Report. 



[MAT 



movements of a fine woman. All the swings 

 and jumps of a rope dancer, wonderful as 

 we may deem his escapes with an unbroken 

 neck, are not to be compared with the sim- 

 ple majesty of the tragedian. Rode T s varia- 

 tions are a study for the violinist, but a 

 burl&squc, and a barbarism for the voice ; 

 and the style of singing which their popu- 

 larity would introduce, must be totally de- 

 trimental to grace, delicacy, and feeling. 



At Covent Garden, Kean has gone spi- 

 ritedly through his usual characters, and 

 has renewed his engagement. We do not 

 expect a very fierce determination in actors 

 to keep their vows of retiring from the 

 stage, while popularity woos them to re- 

 main upon it. But Kean certainly held out 

 his determination to retire too pompously, 

 and too repeatedly, before the public eye, 

 not to make his abandonment of it rather a 

 perplexing affair to a man troubled with 

 any sense of responsibility. His resolution 

 to " leave the stage at the end of the pre- 

 sent season," was promulgated in all shapes, 

 at the head of every announcement of his 

 appearance, for months together, and in a 

 lugubrious length of type, that was enough 

 to throw the passer by into sorrow half a 

 league off. We are extremely glad that he 

 has broken his resolution ; and we hope 

 that he may retain the power, and the will, 

 to play Othello and Shylock, as long as we 

 shall visit the dramatic walls. But we must 

 protest against being made miserable with- 

 out a cause ; being frightened by his adroit- 

 ness in raising a phantom, and lying down 

 in our beds, at the end of the season, in the 

 false horrors of never seeing the Kean 

 again. 



The Easter spectacle, from the pen of 

 Mr. Pococke, a very practised and dexte- 

 rous arranger of these matters, and from 

 the hands and hammer of Mr. Farley, who 

 has long reigned king of melo-drama, was 

 a failure ; such is the slipperiness of stage 

 glories. The last year's spectacle of " Peter 

 Wilkins, in which all the little ballet girls 

 are turned into turtle doves, and old Mr. 

 Chapman wore as many feathers as might 

 have made the clothing of a whole flock of 

 geese, has taken the place of the deceased 

 melo-drama ; and we hope will go on fly- 

 ing, and flourishing, to the end of the des- 

 tined period. The " Race for a Dinner," 



a little adaptation from a French " Rais- 

 ing the M r ind," now playing in the Ly- 

 ceum, has been successful, through Wrench's 

 activity, and dilapidated coat and breeches ; 

 and Vestris, the invincible, is announced to 

 resume her triumphs in fresh pantaloons, 

 and vivacity renewed, by a trip to the pro- 

 vincial theatres. 



The characteristic diligence of Drury 

 Lane has been busy during the month. 

 Listen and Matthews have been brought 

 back, and Mrs. Glossop has sung as bril- 

 liantly as ever. But there has been a de- 

 fect which, neither the humour of the ac- 

 tors, nor the voice of the prima donna, can 

 heal a want of novelty. The season has 

 produced nothing that deserves the name of 



original ; no new comedy no new opera , 



and no tragedy, but an unsuccessful, and 

 undoubtedly uninteresting attempt by Lord 

 Porchester, on the story of Pedro, the cruel. 

 But if comedy is beyond the power of the 

 present writers for the stage, and tragedy 

 has died altogether, without hope of revival, 

 until some man of undiscovered power, and 

 some actress, capable of performing his con- 

 ceptions, start up together ; yet, where is 

 opera ? With such composers as Braham, 

 Bishop, and a crowd of others, why the 

 musical drama should be in its shroud, is 

 beyond our comprehension ; and we have 

 no doubt that its revival would be a matter 

 of easy success. In these remarks, we by 

 no means implicate the manager. We like 

 his activity, straightforwardness, and intelli- 

 gence ; and we like those not at all the worse 

 for their being imported. Drury Lane was 

 so long the sport and ths victim of slovenli- 

 ness, dishonesty, and ^disregard of all the 

 decent habits of business between man and 

 man, that we are glad to acknowledge the 

 Transatlantic change, and congratulate the 

 present manager on having retrieved the 

 character of his theatre. 



The " Savoyard and the Monkey," the 

 Easter melo-drama, has amply succeeded. 

 The monkey's representative, who does 

 honour to the forest, unluckily felt the hazard 

 of human ambition a few nights ago, and 

 tumbled from the top of the scenes on his 

 head. He is, however, recovered. A Pas- 

 sage of the Rhine in this piece, displays a 

 succession of landscape, by Stanfield, per- 

 fectly admirable. 



PROCEEDINGS OF LEARNED SOCIETIES. 



GEOLOGICAL SOCIETY. 



Feb. 15. The anniversary was held this 

 day, and the officers and council for the 

 ensuing year were elected. After which, 

 an able and eloquent address was delivered 

 by the president, Dr. Fitton, on the state 

 of geology in this country. We have not 

 sufficient space to allow of its insertion 

 entire, and to offer an abridgment would 



be to injure its effect. March 7. A pa- 

 per was read, " On the geological relations 

 and internal structure of the magnesian 

 limestone, and the lower portions of the 

 new red sand-stone series, in their range 

 through Nottinghamshire, Derbyshire, 

 Yorkshire, and Durham," by Professor 

 Sedgwick. This paper was the conclusion 

 and a summary of three others, which had 



