Transcription
Friday night was performed at Astley’s Amphitheatre, to a most brilliant and crowded audience, a new Pantomime, called Harlequin Emperor of the Moon. In regard to the general merit of this excellent Pantomime, a correspondent, who has favoured us with this account, cannot but observe that two or three scenes were not so well managed as he could have wished, considering that it entirely destroyed the effect of what was, otherwise, well conceived and represented. However, this casualty cannot detract from the merit Mr. Astley has displayed in the machinery which was contrived and directed under his sole management. The scenes are well painted, and produce a very striking and beautiful appearance from their happy contrast and natural transitions. Our correspondent says, there is one excellence peculiar to this Pantomime, which is a propriety of incident. For no consequence occurs without an apparent cause. No heterogenous jumble of abused transitions merely to display the power of hinges without any necessity in the plot to require them, are seen in this representation. Here is displayed all that can be natural and agreeable to consistency in a representation, whose principle has generally been considered absurdity. But even in representing absurdity, it requires as much propriety as that of Fable does of relative truth. Mr. Astley’s taste and judiciousness, therefore, deserves approbation, in thus correcting a fault, which characterizes too many of our, otherwise, excellent Panomimes [sic]. The words written by Mr. Walwyn, do him great credit, particularly the Magician’s address and song to Harlequin. The Music, he observes, is very pleasing and well adapted, and the performers deserve every praise their various endeavors received.
