THEATRE ROYAL.

Globe, Volume XXI, Issue 1804, 2 December 1879, Page 3

THEATRE ROYAL.

The now play, “Queen’s Evidence,” produced last night at tho Theatre Royal, is a very favorable specimen of the modern school of melodrama as opposed to the old Surrey type. Equally romantic in sentiment and startling in incident, there is more coherency of construction and a higher class of literary effort in tho language than in tho old fashioned melodrama of past days. These improvements ara undoubtedly duo to Dion Bouoiciult, tho founder of the new or sensational-cum emotional school of play , and whoso mantle seems partially to have fallen on the shoulders of Messrs Conquest and Pettilt, tho joint authors of “ Queen’s Evidence.” It is ingeniously constructed and full of startling incidents, the elements of crime of the blackest hue and greatest variety being liberally made use of by tho authors to keep up tho excitement to tho end. Mr J. J. Wallace played the most prominent character in the piece—Isaacs, alias Levant, a rascally Jew, who, after tho commission of countless rascalities, turns Queen’s evidence, and would have hanged his confederate, only the latter is in the nick of time shot by tho very bullet he had intended for his denouncer. Mr Wallace played tho character with much humor and effect, the only drawback being that in trying to graft tho Hebrew on to a very pronounced American dialect, ho somehow got mixed, and became iat her unintelligible. Mr A. Boothman was a cool, gentlemanly, undemonstrative villain of the Hawkesloy type, and Mr J. G. Joyce was an excellent representative of a warm-hearted, elderly English gentleman. Mr Lance Lenton was scarcely weighty enough fer tho part of Gilbert Midland, but otherwise did not sustain the character badly. Of the female characters, Miss Ada Lester stood prominently forward ns tho faithful, loving and persecuted wife who, through good and evil, is staunch to her feeble-minded husband, and her efforts wore warmly recognised by tho audience. Mies Bessie Hill played the little hoy, Arthur, very naturally, and tho Misses Lizzie Lawrence and Lizzie Dixon were each very acceptable as the two young ladies of the piece. The p : coe was well put on tho stage, the Deep Water Lck being exceedingly realistic and alike creditable to tho scenic artist and machinist. The leading characters wero called before the curtain at the end of the second act, and again on tho full of tho curtain. “ Queen’s Evidence” will bo repeated til! further notice.