GILBERT AND SULLIVAN'S NEW DEPARTURE. London, October 5.

Te Aroha News, Volume VI, Issue 316, 14 November 1888, Page 5

GILBERT AND SULLIVAN'S NEW DEPARTURE. London, October 5.

A ,>»JSAT ab the Savoy Thoabie on the occasion of the production of a now Gilbert and Sullivan opera has become a piize to li^ht, to intrigue, to He, bo cry, to sigh, almost bo die for. Everyone who is anyone wan to to be there, and for weeks beforehand Mr j D'Oyley Cm be becomes t.lmosb as important a personage a^ Mr Augustus Harris or the Shah of Peisia. The house on Wednes- j day presented all the familiar foatmcs of its few-and-iur-betwcen jirvmierts. There were the relabhes of the principal performers in the private boxes, the long rows of critics in the stalls, society and Bohemia cheek-by-jowl in the dress circle, and an enthusiastic public in the pit. From an early hour in the afternoon the irrepressible first-nighter, whom no obstacles can daunb, had been pabienbly waiting (armed with a camp-stool, a novel, sandwiches, and sherry) ab the doors of pit and gallery. Eight mortal hours must some of the front row of the pit have been standing or bitting in line outside, yet there they were now, smiling and triumphant, and utterly regaidless of the inevitable penalty of a cold in the head. j We had been warned beforehand that the " Yoemen of the Guard" would mark a new departuic in Gilbert and Sullivan operas. Topsytun eydom was to be abandoned, the ptory told would be a posbible' story, illustrated by possible characters, and the music would be of a rather highei casb than Sir A. Sullhan has accustomed u& bo in his comic operas. These promises have, on the whole, been kept, moie es- i pecially as regards the music, which is in the composer ? best .style. The scene ol " Tho Yoemen of the Guard '" is laid in the Tower (a splendid . ueb) during the reign of Harry the Eighth. Here we i find Colonel Fairfax (JMr Courtice Founds), who has? been sent to prison for .sorceiy, and when the cvi fain rises is about to be executed in hall-an-hour. If ho dies unmarried his money will go to s-onio detested relations; hetheietoie imploies the Lieutenanc of the Tower (Mi Brownlow) to h'nd him a bude of some description. Any woman will do. The lieutenant i^ ac hit wits' end, when a travelling Meirymau or Jester, one Jack Point (Mr Geo. Cros&mith), arriveb, accompanied by his sweetheaib, a dancing girl, El&ie Maynard (Miss Allmann). For a hundred crowns Elbie agrees to become a wife for halt-an-hour, the bargain being .sealed in a delighbiul trio. Lieut. How say you, maiden will you wed, A man about lolose his, head? Wo tun m to you van thence aviso, In hair an hour, poor soul, he dies. For half an hour You'll be a, wife, And then the dower Is yours for life. This tempting oiler "Why refuse If truth the poets toll, Most men, beiore they marry, lo^o Both head and heart as well! All. Temptation, oh temptation, Were we, iv truth, intended To shun, what e'er our station. Your iaseuiations splendid; Or fall, whene'er we view you. Head over heels into you : Point. Though as <i general rule of lite I don t allow my promise 1- wile, My lovely bride ttnit is to be, To marry an> one but me, The circumstances Of this case May set such fancies Out ot place; So, if the fee is duly paid, And he, iv well earned grave, Within the hour is dulyl aid, Objection I will waive ! All. Temptation, oh temptation, etc. Quite Gilberbian is the following dialogue between the Lieutenant and the Jester, the latter having begged to be engaged as the former's merryman. Lieut. But I trust you arc vcr,v careful not to give ollence, I have daughters. Point. Hir, my jests arc most carefully selected, and anything obj eel ion able is expunged. If your honour pleases, 1 w ill try them nrst on your honour's chaplain. Likut. Can you give me an example? Say that T had &at me down humedly on something sharp ? i ; Point. Sir, I should say that you had sat down on tho spur of the moment. Lieut. Humph. I don't think much of that. Is that the best you can do 1 i Point. It has always been much admired, sir, but we will try again. Lieut. Well, then, I am at dinner, and the joint of meat is but half cooked. Point. Why, then, sir I should say—that what is iMiderdono cannot be helped. Lieut. I see. I think that manner of thing would be somewhat irritating. Point. At first, sir, perhaps; but use is everything, and you would come in time to like it. Lieut. We will suppose that I caught you kissing the kitchen wench under my very nose. Point. Under her very nose, good sir—not under yours ! That is where / would kiss her. Do you take me? Oh, sir, apretty wib-a, pretty, pretty wit! Meanwhile Sergeant Meryll (Mr R. Temple), an old retainer of Fairfax's, bub now sergeanb of the Yeomen of the Guard, haf arranged for the escape of the prisoner in the character of his son, Leonard Meryll, who comes that day to join the corps. Phoebe Meryll (Miss Jessie Bond) thioves the keys from the head gaoler, and smuggles into Fairfax's cell the Beefeater's uniform. Presently he emerges, and having been duly introduced to the guard as young Meryll, walks out of the Tower and escapes. In the second act Fairfax, having been pardoned, returns to the Tower as a handsome stranger; Elsie falls in love with him, only bo find bhat he is bhe husband she so hurriedly espoused in prison, The number that excited most applau.se during the evening was the ballad of " The' Merry Man and His Maid," in the lirab act, - sung conjointly by Mi£Grosgnukh,uucl Mi&s

Ulmav. A single verse will show the kind of thing : Point. I have a song to sing, 0 ! Elsiu:. Sing me your song, O ! Point. Ifc is sung to the ruoon By a lovo-lorn loon, Who fled from the mocking thuong, O ! It's tho song oi a morryman, moping mum, Whose soul Avas sad, whoso glance was glum, Who sippod no sup, and who craved no I crumb, I As he sighed for tho lovo of a ladyo. Heighdy ! hoighdy ! Misery mo, lackadaydoe ! Ho sipped no sip, and ho craved no crumb, As he sighed for the love of a ladyo. Fairfax has a lovely tenor song neal words sel to one of those immortal moled ies Sir Arthur occasionally evokes. BALLAD.— Faikfax. Is life a boon? If so, it must befal 'J hat Death, whene'er he call, Must call too soon. Though fourscore yours he givo, YeL one would pray to live Anolhormoon! What kind of plaint have I, Who perish in July? 1 might have had to die, Perchance, in June ! Is life a thorn? Then count it not a whit! Man is well done with it ; fc'oon a& he's born Ho should all means essay To put tho plague away ; And 1, war-worn, Poor captured fugitive. My life most ecladly give — 1 might have had to live Another morn ! One ot the most amusing bits in tho piece is Jack Point's song, dilating on the borrows of a professional jester : if you wish to succeed as a jester, you'll need To consider each person's auricular : What is all ri,:ht foi ii would quite seaudali&o C (For C ib so very particular) ; And I) may be dull, and 10's very thick skull Is as empty of bruins as a ladle; While V is F sharp, and will cry with a carp. That lie & known x our best joke from hiboradlo! Win n your humour they llout, You can't let yoursolf go ; And it docs put you out When a person says, "Oh, I have known that old joke from my cradle !' If your master is surly, from getting up early (And tempcis aro short in the morning), An inopportune joke is enough to provoke Him, to give yon, at once, a month's warning. Then if you refrain, he is at you again, For he likos to get value for money. He'll ask then and there, with an insolent stare, " If you know that you're paid to be iunny ?" It adds to the task OC ii merry man's place, When your principal asks, With a seoul on his face, if you know that you re paid to be funny? Comes a Bishop, maj be, or a solemn D.D. — Oh, bewaie ol his anger provoking ! .Better not pull his hair-don't stick pins in his chair : Ho don't understand practical joking. If the jc&ts that you crack ha\e an orthodox smack, You may get a bland smile from the-e sages ; Bug should it, by chance, bo imported Irom Franco. HalL-a-erown '& stopped out of your wages ! It's a general rule, Though your zeal it maj quench, If the family fool Tells a joke thats too French, Half -a-ci own is stopped out of his wages ! Though your head it may rack with a bilious attack, And your senses with toothache you're losing, Don't be mopy and fiat — they don't line you for that, 11 you' c properly quaint and amusing ! TuouKh j our Avifc ran away with a soldier that day, And took w ith her >our trifle of monoj ; Bless your heart, they don't mind— they'ie exceedingly kind — They aon't blame you— as loiiijab i ou're tunnj ! It's a comfort to feel IC j our partner should flit, Though you slitter a deal. They don't mind it a bit — They don't blame j ou- so long as you're iunny ! There is also a true (Hlbertian lyiic in the second act dilating on the art of courting. This is set to a rollicking tune and terminates in a lovely dance .—. — TKIO.-Fairkax, Elsik, and Puck his. Faik. A man who would woo a fan maid, Should 'pi entice himself to the trade ; Aim .study all day. In methodical waj , How to flatter, cajole, and pcisuade. He should 'prentice himsclt at iourtoen, And practice from morning to c'en ; And ■when he's of age, Ir he will, I'll engage, He may rapture the heart oi a queen ! All. It is purely a matter ol bkill. Which all may attain ii they will : But e\ cry Jack, Ho must study the knack If he wants to make suic of his Jill ! ELbiK It lic'fa made the best use of his time, His twig he'll so carefully lime That every bird Will come down at his word, Whatever its plumage and clime lie must learn that the thrill of a touch May mean little, or nothing, or much; It's an instrument rare, To be handled with care, And ought to be treated as such. All. It's purely a matter of skill, &c. Piice. Then a glance may bo timid or free, It u ill vary m mighty degree. From an impudent stare To a look of despair That no maid without pity can bee ; And a glance of despair is no quide — It may have its ridiculous side ; It may draw you a tear Or a box on the ear ; You can never be sure till you've tried ! All. It is purely a matter of skill, &c.