“Temptation,” a “new, grand fantastic ballet, in three tableaux,” invented and arranged by Signor Carlo Coppi, with scenery by Ryan, and music by M. Jacobi, was a big and very successful production, in which a Signorina Elia, as première, made a hit.
The production of “Aladdin” by John Hollingshead on December 19th, 1892, called forth tributes of praise for the enterprising and ingenious Manager. The familiar story was well kept to, the situations were telling, and the four changes of scene were effected without once lowering the curtain, while the last, “The Veil of Diamonds,” was amazing. A tableau curtain of glass was introduced, composed of some 75,000 glass facets held together by twenty-four miles of wire, and illuminated by various electric and other lights of different colours, the whole achieving one of the most wonderful effects ever seen on the stage, one not easily forgotten.
The cast was a strong one, Signorina Legnani—a finished dancer of the typical Italian school—as the Princess; Mlle. Marie, a charming little dancer and clever mime, as Aladdin; Signorina Pollini, as the Spirit of the Lamp; that fine actor and dancer, Mr. Fred Storey, as the Magician; with good support from Mme. Roffey, Miss Hooten, the Almonti Brothers, and, of course, a wondrous array of beauty among the Alhambra corps de ballet. Mr. Bruce Smith had provided artistic scenery; Mr. Howard Russell was the designer of the costumes—as for several of the Alhambra ballets—which were admirably turned out as usual by M. and Mme. Alias; and M. Jacobi had once again surpassed himself in the music, that for the beautiful “chrysanthemum” scene and a waltz in A, in the finale, proving especially popular.
Another great success was achieved in the production of “Chicago,” in March, 1893, a lively, up-to-date production, which later ran into a second edition. “Fidelia,” adapted from “Le Violon du Diable,” was a romantic ballet that also went into a second edition. The Alhambra by now had as Business Manager, Mr. Albert A. Gilmer, with Mr. A. G. Ford as Stage Manager, though Signor Casati, as maître de ballet, M. G. Jacobi, as conductor and composer of the music, were still continuing in their accustomed spheres.
Yet another success achieved under the same able direction was “Don Quixote,” with Mr. Fred Storey as a brilliant exponent of the title-rôle, and Signorina Porro as the Dulcinea, La Salmoiraghi as the niece, and Mr. Fred Yarnold, as the Sancho Panza, other parts being well filled by Miss Julia Seale (a handsome and clever dancer and mime long associated with the Alhambra), Mme. Roffey, Miss Hooten and the Almontis.
The ballet was a great success with the public, and a happy comment by a leading critic was as follows: “Within the charming framework of the four admirably painted scenes by Ryan there is a continuous procession of ballet incident, the costumes quaint, picturesque, poetic, splendid, and nevertheless suggestive always of old Spain. Mr. Howard Russell, the designer, deserves great praise for the fancy and versatility which he has been able to show without proving unfaithful to his theme. While his beautiful dresses give rare variety and character to the dances of maidservants, pages, millers, grape-gatherers, brigands, wood-nymphs, in the earlier portions of the piece, they are seen to really magnificent effect in the grand gathering of all the Terpsichorean forces of the theatre in the final tableau. The stage organisation of the Alhambra is always good. Nowhere do we see better mass dancing; and nowhere either do the dancers receive more assistance from the musician. M. Jacobi’s ballet music is as sympathetic as its tunefulness is inexhaustible. This is M. Jacobi’s eighty-ninth ballet here.” That last remark may come as a revelation to those who do not realise how much of ballet we have had at two London theatres in the past thirty years. “Don Quixote” was M. Jacobi’s “eighty-ninth ballet” at the Alhambra, and—there were other Jacobian productions to follow!
Mr. Alfred Moul in 1894 became the General Manager of the Alhambra and the evidences of his long associations with the dramatic and lyric stage were quickly apparent in the series of brilliant successes with Ballet which now were placed to the credit of the historic house of which he had assumed control.
A marked success in the summer of the same year was “Sita,” the story of which dealt with an Indian girl’s hopeless love for the accepted lover of her master’s daughter.
A grand spectacular ballet, on the familiar theme of “Ali Baba and the Forty Thieves,” was the sensation of the close of 1894, more particularly owing to the introduction of an “aerial ballet” by the well-known Grigolati troupe. The treatment of the story was on conventional lines, naturally, but the ballet was gorgeously staged, and introduced an especially attractive dancer, Signorina Cecilia Cerri, while Mlle. Louise Agoust, as Morgiana, added to the laurels she had already won in other productions as a first-rate mime of dramatic character. “Bluebeard” was another popular success on familiar lines; and “Rip Van Winkle”—with Mr. Fred Storey, masterly as Rip—yet another, towards the end of 1896.