BURLESQUE ACTORS AND ACTRESSES.

Poverty Bay Standard, Volume I, Issue 37, 22 March 1873, Page 3

BURLESQUE ACTORS AND ACTRESSES.

Tn every Company th ere is the forward, good lookup yonng woman who makes her lower limbs flourish like the Isle ;qf Man ; arms, who Can ring a pert and almost impudent song, and above all is most at home in a spangled page’s dress—that is, a stage page’s dress—for in no Court in Europe, at least ireqnented by decent ladies, would such a costume have been ' folerafed. This yburig* person must figure in every foolery as Prince Pettytoes or the young marquis, with an eye-glass and umbrella, accompanied by the spangled satin tights.' The wretched monotony of these charactrsrs, and the invariable repetition of the points, show how poor and limited is the capability of burlesque. There is a miserable round of conventional tricks, chiefly taken ffom the music-" halls — and, indeed, many of these young ladies graduate at .the “ halls,” and bring these stale devices from their Alma Mater, which are repeated ad nauseam. For jnstanpe, wheq a secret is to be communicated tjjqrg is but the one “ common form ” —the, two parties stepping down to the front with grotesque steps,' as if ill time to music, “ bobbing” their head?, looting round mysteriously, and conveying the effect of doing something very droll. The heart sinks when we see this poverty-stricken programme beginning. There are. scores of burlesques, too, where the situation is that the characters go tripping round, crossing each other, not forgetting the regulation formula for getting off, at the end ,of some grotesque dance—viz,, ' by jumping Tike a kangaroo. Another conventional character in the burlesque is the storming or raging king, with his queen (usually played by a gentleman) ; while another is the leading cotmic character/ some qionstrosity of “ making up ” —;some terrible chef-d' oeuvre df smearing, smirching, and masquerading. A combination of a modern hat with a Roman dress—a modern dress with a Roman hat — some such nightmare of costume is all thfet is required. All, of course, wholly outside the regions of fun; paiqt, patches, and dress being hardly reebgj nised as elements of genuine humor. These, indeed, belong to the mountebanks, and it is an tnifair “ poaching ”, op their manors., .Burlesque, is. as unchanging as 'some old Toly, ‘and cannot succeed without repeating its old devices. Accordingly the old characters and their old tricks are repeated in each effort with but little variety. It! tvill be said, perhaps;- that though this entertainment bears the conventional name of “ burlesque,” it aims at a different order of amusement. It intends to entertain by mtimming simply. It does nos mean to “burlesque” a story in the strict sense of the term. This is the only Way of defending the entertainment; but it is at the expense of its dignity, for it is thus reduced the level of Punch and other shows. 'A' trifling question, however, remains behind which, may, interest the pubha, who after all is the chief party viz., Whether burlesque on the true principle would ,not be a far- more delightful ' sort rff' entertainment — whether by following .thesp false gods it has not lost the delight of a truer faith. Take the! subject of “ Blue Beard,” for instance. Recently it has been put on the boards after the conventional fashion — the hero of dancing. grotesque, with\a false nose, ringing ppmic songs,) his,wife.“ dancing off/’ every character being a sort cn clown, and the story generally incomprehensible. The same subject is put on thestagb‘inParra,butthere it is travestied, treated according to the priptciplG® igmuine W conception of the character of Bide Beard as that of & affected and refined, being, who required change, who Was hot in hßeast triiculbht, but only fickle, /was ip itself highly humorous. All this is amusing and comic, but opr burlesque actors, being mummers, require pieces of 'another description to be written ' for them. Last year Gilbert brought out “ Thespis ” at the Gaiety, afi agreeable piece of humor, turning on the “ PfcW god business ” being “ used up.” Bit the players did not seem to understand it. The “ fun ” did not tell; the clever

Ijaiitomimist Mr.' Payne brought, his egs to the rescue—every three or four minutes spinning them about, or converting them into compasses—and thus secured a laugh. The lively Toole “ gagged ” and “ gagged ” again. He got hold of, a phrase, “ I don’t know you,” and ground it like the handle of a barrel organ. Buch is the true burlesque bv the . side of ( English buritetqlie.— (Gentleman 8 Magazine.