Amusements, Lectures, &q. ROYAL ITALIAN OPERA.

Saturday Advertiser, Volume III, Issue 124, 24 November 1877, Page 12

Amusements, Lectures, &q. ROYAL ITALIAN OPERA.

t Tta Tfiahagfii&nt the successof -the ’ opera season, so far as it hasgone. ’■Good houses bave .been the order of the nightmand tliepublid seem 'satisfiedwith the performances ;There ishbinistake about it,, ithe members of * thepresent company are not ‘afraid, of work, judging by the rapidity with which they have produced opera after opera. Their grandest triumph up to the presenttime has undoubtedly been “Aida.” This masterpiece of Yerdi’s, was,; as many of our readers : are aware, composed for the l present Khedive of* Egypt, ;on the Occasion of the inauguration of the Yice : . regal 5! at' Cairo in 1872; The, distinguished’ poetj ; Grhislanzoni, was entrusted with the libretto, and the composition of the music was left to the care of. that prince of composers, Yerdi. An Egyptian tale of love'forms the groundwork of the plot. A young captain, blinded by his devotion to an alien princess who has been taken prisoner, betrays his country,, and is condemned to be. buried alive. ; His faithful and loving Ethiopian manages to penetrate into his tomb, arid there dies in his arms. Such is the subject towards which both.poet and composer had to direct the energies of' their intellects, and they bave good reason,to feel satisfied with the result. Both dramatist and composer have fulfilled their respective duties well, and “ Aida” may he pronounced a very grand work. Yerdi has travelled from liis usual path in the present opera, for in this composition his arias have more than is usually the case with liim, the form of tuneful recitatives. The melancholy story in which true love leads to sorrow and to death, has given Yerdi a_ fine outlet forhis peculiar genius. ' Pathos’and passion are interwoven throughout the r opera by the master mind of the. composer, and thougk. there are but few gems which you can carry away with you, still the music is exquisite and. spark ling, from the beginning to the end. of the opera. The manner iin whick< “Aida” was produced by the present company was excellent. The costumes were rich, and the scenic effects were telling. As a spectacular production alone “Aida” is well worth seeing. The work is too magnificent to give detailed notices of the music on the present occasion, so .we must content ourselves. with.briefly noticing the performers. As the heroine, Signora Guadagnini was remarkably effective. Both her singing' and acting were admirable, and although the notes in many of the concerted pieces are extremely high, the Signora managed tocompassThem and render them effectively. As the heroine number two, Signora Yenosta gained a great triumph, both by her singing and acting. Her fine contralto voice was heard to great advantage, and her histrionic talents found ample scope in the part of Amneris. In the role of Badamas, Signor Camero made a decided “ hit.” His singing was spirited, and his acting was forcible and expressive. Signor Tessada as the King of Egypt, Signor Cesari as Bamphis, and Signor Gambetti as Amonastio, acquitted, themselves remarkably well. The members of the chorus and orchestra must be complimented on the manner in which they acquitted themselves, and the juvenile supernumeraries who represented dancing Ethiopian slaves were very amusing, and deserve a meed of praise. It is a pity “ Aida” was withdrawn so soon, as such an opera shouldrun a week in a town like Dunedin. However, the public will have another opportunity of witnessing it. “Boberto il Diavolo” was repeated on Wednesday evening with great success to a well-filled house, and on Thursday evening “ Faust” was again placed upon the boards. IST ext week the company announce that they will produce Wagner’s wonderful opera, “ Lohengrin.” This, we understand, is their trump card, and we have no doubt it will have a successful run. The coming week will be the last of the present season, as the company open at Christchurch on the following Monday.

LECTURES

On Monday evening last, the Count de Zaba repeated his eloquent lecture on “ Poland,” at the Temperance Hall, for the benefit of the Organ Fund of All Saints’ Church. Bishop JSTevill occupied the chair, and there was a good attendance present. On the motion of the Bev. B. L. Stanford, a hearty vote of thanks to the Count was carried by acclamation. On the evening of Thursday, the 15th, Mr Thos. Bracken delivered a lecture on thePower' of the Press” at the hall of the Working Men’s Club. There were over 100persons present. The chair was occupied by Mr John Dick, President of the Eclectic Association, and the lecture was given under the auspices of that body. At the termination of the lecture, Mr E. S. Hay proposed a hearty vote of thanks to the lecturer, and it was carried by acclamation.