re ee Fee eee 
1828.] 
{ 537 ] 
MONTHLY THEATRICAL REPORT. 
THE first month of our theatrical winter 
in London is generally as free from novelty 
as the most indolent of critics need desire. 
But we live in an age of innovation; and 
our winter managers—particularly he of 
Drury—seem determined not to be behind 
the rest of the world, in displaying that 
most unequivocal evidence of either wisdom, 
or the want of it, as the case may be. What 
is proved by it in the present instance, we 
shall not pretend to say ; but with the re- 
sults that now claim our notice, we are 
more than content. In fact, when Mr. 
Price can get into his hands such a tragedy 
as the “ Rienzi’’ of Miss Mitford, and sucha 
débutante as Miss Phillips to perform in it, 
he may bring them forward whenever it may 
seem to suit his managerial interests to do so: 
those being, we take it, the acknowledged 
and sole criteria of a modern manager’s 
wisdom. Still, however (not having yet 
been able to attain to a very profound des 
gree of respect for the penetration of our 
accredited purveyors of dramatic amuse- 
ment), we cannot help suspecting that it 
was rather in contempt of the public taste, 
than in reverence towards it, that the two 
novelties now to be noticed were brought 
forward precisely at the moment when, of 
all others during the dramatic winter, the 
town is most empty of a dramatic audience. 
We imagine the truth to be, that ‘certain 
shrewd doubts were entertained, in that 
most uncritical of all spots, the Green Room, 
as to the success both of ‘ Rienzi” and of 
Miss Phillips; and that the moment of 
bringing these matters to issue was ¢hosen 
accordingly. Be this as it may, the success 
of the experiment (so far as we, the public, 
ate concerned) has been complete; and we 
proceed at once to give a brief account of it. 
Rienzi” is *¢ founded wpon’’ the true 
history of the extraordinary individual who 
Dore that mame in the middle of the four- 
teenth century, in Rome. But those spec- 
tators who will not take the trouble to en- 
quire for themselves into matters of this 
nature, should be expressly informed, that 
history has been followed no step further 
than the dramatic purposes of the tragedy 
writer demanded. Miss Mitford has not 
scrupled to omit, to expand, to modify, to 
alter, and even to falsify facts, wherever the 
object she had in view, of producing an ef- 
fective acting drama, seemed to call for such 
4 course of proceeding. Without thinking 
it needful to enter into any inquiry as to 
the propriety of this, we are. particular in 
stating the fact, because the most influential 
oracles of the daily press give theit readers 
no hint of this being the case, but, on the 
contrary, declare that historical truth has 
been preserved *¢ as much as circumstances 
would permit.”” What degree of latitude 
these critics may be pleased to allow to 
* circumstances,” we cannot tell; but cer- 
M.M. New Series.x—Vou. VI. No. 35. 
tain it is, that, to say nothing of Miss Mit- 
ford’s having invented a// the female cha- 
racters, and the most important but one of 
the males, she has unquestionably given a 
tone and bearing to all the latter portion of 
Rienzi’s career, which the truth does not 
justify; and has, moreover, so entirely 
changed the final catastrephe of that career 
as to render it purely her own: that it is 
also Natwre’s, we are not disposed to deny, 
any more than that all her alterations have 
been conceived and effected with great judg- 
ment, and in the true spirit of a dramatic 
poet. But that she has made these changes, 
should not the less be denied or concealed. 
Leaving all further considerations of this 
kind to those who may wish to pursue them 
into detail; we now turn our exclusive at- 
tention to Miss Mitford’s tragedy, as it is— 
not as what it might or might not have been. 
It opens by certain intimations, touching 
the existing feud between the rival houses 
of Colonna and Ursini; who may, at that 
period, be almost said to have divided be- 
tween them the allegiance of the degenerate 
Roman people. At the time of the tragedy 
commencing, Rienzi (Mr. Young) may be 
supposed to have been secretly cherishing, 
during the greater part of his previous life, 
the rnost intense and absorbing desires to 
behold, and, if possible, to himself effect a 
recurrence to the older and better times of 
the Roman republic. In fact, though of 
the lowest origin, he may be looked upon as 
a shrewd, enlightened, and courageous pa- 
triot, who has fully satisfied himself as to 
the possible regeneration of the country 
which he leves, and prepared to wait and 
watch, with an inflexible patience, till some 
fit eccasion presents itself of attempting the 
desired change. Such an occasion is made 
to occur in the opening scene of the tragedy. 
A, Roman citizen is publicly outraged by 
some of the vassals of the Uysini, in pre- 
sence of the assembled people; and Rienzi, 
having first punished the offender, calls upon 
his countrymen on the spot to assert their 
long-forgotten rights, and join him in cast- 
ing off the contemptible tyranny under 
which they are daily sinking lower and 
lower jn the scale of humanity. They are 
no less astonished than moved, and roused 
by his bold and eloquent appeal; for they 
had hitherto known him only as a permitted 
jester and buffvon in the family of the Co- 
lonna. The people with one accord meet 
and entertain his call upon them, and he 
appoints a general rendezvous at night on 
the Capitoline hill, at which meeting he is 
joined, and his views seconded, by Angelo 
Colonna (Mr. Cooper), the young and en- 
thusiastic heir to the name and honours of 
the first family in Rome; but, forgetting 
his pride of birth in his newly-awakened 
love for the beautiful Claudia, Rienzi’s 
daughter (Miss Phillips). With this ac- 
3 Z 
