Mr. Pope, as Hotspur. Mr. Johnstone as Apollo.
Fancy our modern Royal Family, on their visits to the Theatre—joining heartily in the choruses, and witnessing slang dances: yet so it was in 1793.
"The very pleasant Comedy of Notoriety was, yesterday evening, performed before their Majesties, the three elder Princesses, and a very brilliant house. Some well-timed songs introduced into the pantomime of Harlequin's Museum, gave the audience an opportunity of testifying their loyalty to the King, and attachment to both her Majesty, and her family, who joined heartily in the choruses. We never saw them better entertained. But surely the Slang dance which is introduced might be very properly omitted:—it is too vulgar for so elegant, and well conducted, a theatre."—(Times, Feb. 5, 1793.)
"The private boxes at the Haymarket Theatre are so thinly partitioned, that we are surprised any person should deem them proper places to recapitulate domestic bickerings."—(Times, Feb. 6, 1793.)
The following is apropos of Mrs. Jordan:—
"Performers at the Theatres are now paid more liberally than heretofore. We are sorry when their public conduct gives reason for complaint. As the frequenters of them are their support, it will ever be necessary, in the public, to bring them to a proper sense of their situation. It is only by this means the conductors of our entertainments can have any sway over them."—(Times, Mar. 10, 1793.)
"Brandenburgh House Theatricals.
"The opening of the New Theatre, belonging to the Margrave of Anspach's Villa, at Hammersmith, took place on Thursday evening, with an entertainment the most costly, and at the same time, the most tasty, and elegant, we ever remember to have witnessed. The Prince of Wales, who was present, declared he had never seen anything more splendid, and handsomely conducted. The Theatre is built at a short distance from the house, between which there is a communication by means of a colonnade. The outside appearance rather resembles an old Gothic building, than a Temple devoted to the Muses. The inside is prettily fitted up, but the ceiling is too low for the size of it.
"The performance opened by a prelude: after which a little piece was represented, entitled Fanfan and Colas, the characters by the Margravine, young Keppel Craven, Mons. and Medame Texier, and Count d'Alet, Lord High Chamberlain of the Household. The third petite piece was a very humorous dialogue called Le Poulet, between Mrs. Hobart, as an English servant maid, and Mons. Le Texier, as a French Valet. Both were inquisitive after news: the one told all the chit chat of the town in her English dialect: the other told the great exploits going forward in France, in French. Mrs. Hobart played her part to admiration, and very aptly introduced, among other things, the story of her own public Fete, last summer, at Ham, where the torrents of rain poured down, in such abundance, as to turn all her fine creams into poor milk and water.