DOI Heft:
January 15, 1881
DOI Seite / Zitierlink: https://doi.org/10.11588/diglit.17750#0022
January 15, 1881.] PUNCH, OR THE LONDON CHARIVARI. 13
CUP AND BALL AT THE LYCEUM.
This is the division of the Lyceum programme,— Cup first, and
Ball afterwards in the Second Act of the Corsican Brothers.
Since the failure of the Laureate's poor—very poor—Queen Mary
at the Lyceum, and since the disappearance of that light and airy
trifle The Falcon, miscalled a play, from the St. James's, the Bard's
dramatic work has slightly improved. He is still reckless of con-
struction—was not the immortal William also reckless in this
respect ?—and he needs compression. But who is to compress a
Laureate ? Not even our Irving of the Unknown Tongue could
venture on this.
We were wrong in our anticipations. The Cup, however suggestive
of the Turf, has nothing whatever racey about it. It is a tragedy in
two Acts and five tableaux; and while, after one hearing, it is im-
possible to do justice to its merits in detail, it is easy to point out
its defects, and pleasant to record our favourable impression of it
as a whole. Subsequent familiarity with the text may or may not
breed contempt; and, to take a single striking instance—the speech
of Synorix about the Lion-hunt—we confess to feeling considerable
disappointment at reading these lines, printed in the Daily Tele-
graph, after having heard them finely declaimed by Mr. Irving
on the Stage. In fact, this speech and his own extempore address
to the audience before the Curtain, were the two best delivered
and most distinct utterances we have heard from Mr. Irving
for some considerable time. The speech about the Lion-hunt is
effective on the Stage, as is a similar passage in Bornbastes Furioso—
but on examination it is mere sound, signifying nothing.
The Cup, which certainly does not cheer, lacks that one touch of
human nature which has given life to worse plays, and without
which the most poetic drama ever written must be doomed to
oblivion. Seldom has a piece been so magnificently and so artisti-
callv placed on the Stage as The Cup. The Temple of Artemis
is of itself alone worth a visit; the movement and the grouping being
nearly faultless. Seldom, too, has Miss Ellen Terry been seen,
throughout the play, to greater advantage than in the character
IK
" A Fair Gal Asian in Her Harpy Home."
of Comma ; and seldom has she been heard to less advantage than in
the last Act. She is sweetness and light, and classic grace, and
everything that is lovely, but she is not a tragedienne, and, when
the call is made on her tragic powers, she fails. Camma, the sweet,
loving wife, - she is ; and Camma, the outraged wife, she is; but
Camma, the avenger of blood, as she shoidd be in the supreme situation
of the Second Act, she is not, and never can be. Yet granting this
natural defect, which is not counterbalanced by her art, her Camma
is a fine performance, and it would be difficult to name anyone—the
divine Sarah included—who could play it altogether better; and
certainly no one—the divine S. B. again included—who would be so
powerful an attraction. Of course, all the Burne-Jonesians and the
aesthetic pagans will rave about her in her classic drapery as '' con-
summate," and about Mr. Irving in his leopard-skin and then in
his regal robes, as "utter! too precious!" and so forth. If the
rhapsodies of this school could ruin a piece, the fate of The Cup would
probably be sealed within a month.
Mr. Irving as Synorix, the ex-Tetrarch—a title which enlightened
scholars, before they had read up the subject, thought had something
to do with Tea-Tray in reference to the Cup—did not at once convey
the idea of his being "such a dog" as to have got himself kicked
out of all decent Galatian Society, so that no gal Asian could be
allowed by her parents or guardians to speak to him, and who in
consequence of this gaiety of disposition had had his licence withdrawn
by the Roman Governor. On the contrary, his expression was more
hang-dog than gay dog, and his style of ingratiating himself with
Camma, when left alone with her for five minutes by her husband the
unsuspicious Sennatics (oapitally played by Mr. Terriss), was any-
thing but '-that of an irresistibly fascinating deceiver, or even a
deceiver of ordinarily gentlemanly bearing. The Laureate makes
Synorix say that he ' never yet met the woman he couldn't wheedle,"
or words to that effect—the actual word "wheedle" being used—
but anything less like a " wheedler " than Mr. Irving as the wicked
Sinner-ix it would be difficult to imagine. Taking this defect of
manner with Miss Terry's lack of power in the Third Act, and
allowing that for certain phases of the two characters no two actors
could be less fitted, while for others no two actors could be better
fitted, we still have to acknowledge in both parts a remarkable
performance, and we are able to congratulate them on a distinct
success, to which, it is fair to add, the admirable moimting and the
excellent stage management very largely contribute.
The plot is briefly this -.—Synorix sends Camma a High-Art
Cup, which she takes, as an offering, to the Temple of High Art-
emis, and on her return thence she
is waylaid by the gay dog Synorix,
who, resenting her husband's unex-
pected interference, stabs him on
the spot,—a vital spot,—and, a year
after, Synorix, now King of Galatia,
comes to offer his hand and half-a-
crown (so to speak) to the widow of
Sennatus, very much as Bichard the
Third did to the
lovely Lady
Anne. Camma
accepts him, but
being as artful
as she is vindic-
tive, puts poison
into the high-
art - loving - cup
out of which
they are both to
drink at the "The Cup! Champagne Cup ! No! 'tis Real Pai*
celebration of Cup—
the nuptial—or I'll "Walk it Off!" ^™ [Staggers.
cuptial — rites. "^Z-^J^
Synorix very soon'feels'uncomfortable, has'an'attaek'of'the staggers,
and exclaiming that he recognises the spasm as^one he had "had a
touch of " in Rome, adds that, he will "walk it off"—or words to
that effect put into his mouth at this terrible' crisis by that grim
humorist The Laureate, who will have his little joke,
Syn-o-rix
The bucket kicks,
And so, about five minutes afterwards—it seems an age—does
Camma.
So there is an end of one, two, and three—
Teriss and Irving and Ellen Terrje-^.
And then The Corsican Brothers (not Limited) is played as a
Christmas afterpiece. It's a cheerful bill altogether. So, for a little
light, after all the shade, we cross the road to the Gaiet}^ and see
the last Act of The Forty Thieves.
;Cave Ganem" and the Forty-sesame Thieves.
New Year's Cards.—Exchanging cards used to be a prelude to
a duel. Nowadays everybody exchanges cards with everybody else,
and the only fights are Tea-fights. A hint to Mr. Bbadlaugh.
vol. lxxx.
CUP AND BALL AT THE LYCEUM.
This is the division of the Lyceum programme,— Cup first, and
Ball afterwards in the Second Act of the Corsican Brothers.
Since the failure of the Laureate's poor—very poor—Queen Mary
at the Lyceum, and since the disappearance of that light and airy
trifle The Falcon, miscalled a play, from the St. James's, the Bard's
dramatic work has slightly improved. He is still reckless of con-
struction—was not the immortal William also reckless in this
respect ?—and he needs compression. But who is to compress a
Laureate ? Not even our Irving of the Unknown Tongue could
venture on this.
We were wrong in our anticipations. The Cup, however suggestive
of the Turf, has nothing whatever racey about it. It is a tragedy in
two Acts and five tableaux; and while, after one hearing, it is im-
possible to do justice to its merits in detail, it is easy to point out
its defects, and pleasant to record our favourable impression of it
as a whole. Subsequent familiarity with the text may or may not
breed contempt; and, to take a single striking instance—the speech
of Synorix about the Lion-hunt—we confess to feeling considerable
disappointment at reading these lines, printed in the Daily Tele-
graph, after having heard them finely declaimed by Mr. Irving
on the Stage. In fact, this speech and his own extempore address
to the audience before the Curtain, were the two best delivered
and most distinct utterances we have heard from Mr. Irving
for some considerable time. The speech about the Lion-hunt is
effective on the Stage, as is a similar passage in Bornbastes Furioso—
but on examination it is mere sound, signifying nothing.
The Cup, which certainly does not cheer, lacks that one touch of
human nature which has given life to worse plays, and without
which the most poetic drama ever written must be doomed to
oblivion. Seldom has a piece been so magnificently and so artisti-
callv placed on the Stage as The Cup. The Temple of Artemis
is of itself alone worth a visit; the movement and the grouping being
nearly faultless. Seldom, too, has Miss Ellen Terry been seen,
throughout the play, to greater advantage than in the character
IK
" A Fair Gal Asian in Her Harpy Home."
of Comma ; and seldom has she been heard to less advantage than in
the last Act. She is sweetness and light, and classic grace, and
everything that is lovely, but she is not a tragedienne, and, when
the call is made on her tragic powers, she fails. Camma, the sweet,
loving wife, - she is ; and Camma, the outraged wife, she is; but
Camma, the avenger of blood, as she shoidd be in the supreme situation
of the Second Act, she is not, and never can be. Yet granting this
natural defect, which is not counterbalanced by her art, her Camma
is a fine performance, and it would be difficult to name anyone—the
divine Sarah included—who could play it altogether better; and
certainly no one—the divine S. B. again included—who would be so
powerful an attraction. Of course, all the Burne-Jonesians and the
aesthetic pagans will rave about her in her classic drapery as '' con-
summate," and about Mr. Irving in his leopard-skin and then in
his regal robes, as "utter! too precious!" and so forth. If the
rhapsodies of this school could ruin a piece, the fate of The Cup would
probably be sealed within a month.
Mr. Irving as Synorix, the ex-Tetrarch—a title which enlightened
scholars, before they had read up the subject, thought had something
to do with Tea-Tray in reference to the Cup—did not at once convey
the idea of his being "such a dog" as to have got himself kicked
out of all decent Galatian Society, so that no gal Asian could be
allowed by her parents or guardians to speak to him, and who in
consequence of this gaiety of disposition had had his licence withdrawn
by the Roman Governor. On the contrary, his expression was more
hang-dog than gay dog, and his style of ingratiating himself with
Camma, when left alone with her for five minutes by her husband the
unsuspicious Sennatics (oapitally played by Mr. Terriss), was any-
thing but '-that of an irresistibly fascinating deceiver, or even a
deceiver of ordinarily gentlemanly bearing. The Laureate makes
Synorix say that he ' never yet met the woman he couldn't wheedle,"
or words to that effect—the actual word "wheedle" being used—
but anything less like a " wheedler " than Mr. Irving as the wicked
Sinner-ix it would be difficult to imagine. Taking this defect of
manner with Miss Terry's lack of power in the Third Act, and
allowing that for certain phases of the two characters no two actors
could be less fitted, while for others no two actors could be better
fitted, we still have to acknowledge in both parts a remarkable
performance, and we are able to congratulate them on a distinct
success, to which, it is fair to add, the admirable moimting and the
excellent stage management very largely contribute.
The plot is briefly this -.—Synorix sends Camma a High-Art
Cup, which she takes, as an offering, to the Temple of High Art-
emis, and on her return thence she
is waylaid by the gay dog Synorix,
who, resenting her husband's unex-
pected interference, stabs him on
the spot,—a vital spot,—and, a year
after, Synorix, now King of Galatia,
comes to offer his hand and half-a-
crown (so to speak) to the widow of
Sennatus, very much as Bichard the
Third did to the
lovely Lady
Anne. Camma
accepts him, but
being as artful
as she is vindic-
tive, puts poison
into the high-
art - loving - cup
out of which
they are both to
drink at the "The Cup! Champagne Cup ! No! 'tis Real Pai*
celebration of Cup—
the nuptial—or I'll "Walk it Off!" ^™ [Staggers.
cuptial — rites. "^Z-^J^
Synorix very soon'feels'uncomfortable, has'an'attaek'of'the staggers,
and exclaiming that he recognises the spasm as^one he had "had a
touch of " in Rome, adds that, he will "walk it off"—or words to
that effect put into his mouth at this terrible' crisis by that grim
humorist The Laureate, who will have his little joke,
Syn-o-rix
The bucket kicks,
And so, about five minutes afterwards—it seems an age—does
Camma.
So there is an end of one, two, and three—
Teriss and Irving and Ellen Terrje-^.
And then The Corsican Brothers (not Limited) is played as a
Christmas afterpiece. It's a cheerful bill altogether. So, for a little
light, after all the shade, we cross the road to the Gaiet}^ and see
the last Act of The Forty Thieves.
;Cave Ganem" and the Forty-sesame Thieves.
New Year's Cards.—Exchanging cards used to be a prelude to
a duel. Nowadays everybody exchanges cards with everybody else,
and the only fights are Tea-fights. A hint to Mr. Bbadlaugh.
vol. lxxx.