259A (Vol. 2)

ASTLEY’S NEW AMPHITHEATRE.

Whilst Mr. Astley gratifies his audience with pieces produced in a style of splendour and magnificence hitherto wholly unrivalled, we consider it as paying a compliment to the taste of the town, to state that his theatre continues to enjoy an uninterrupted career of popular favour. The serio-comic pantomime of “Benefaiso,” in the course of which eighteen entirely new scenes are displayed, is one of the most striking performances we ever remember to have witnessed; and the French spectacle of the “Female hussar,” has equal interest and merit. On Monday last a grand historical national spectacle, in two parts, called “1588, or the Spanish Armada,” was produced. It possesses great merit, and was received with the warmest applause.