the year owing to the continued popularity of "The Second in Command." Miss Winifred Emery made a welcome reappearance in the part of Muriel Mainwaring, which had previously been admirably played by Miss Sibyl Carlisle.

Mr. Forbes Robertson had a somewhat unfortunate season at the Comedy. "Count Tezma" proved a failure not to be redeemed by the gorgeous uniforms of the soldiers playing so prominent a part in the cast, while "The Sacrament of Judas," though excellent as a lever de rideau, proved incapable of successful expansion into an entire evening's entertainment.

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Mr. Martin Harvey, after successfully reviving "The Only Way" at the New Apollo Theatre, produced at the Court a version of Mr. Marion Crawford's "Cigarette Maker's Romance." The story, though very slight and fanciful, gave Mr. Harvey the opportunity for an exquisite piece of acting as Count Skariatine.

Mr. Lewis Waller at the close of the run of "Henry V." produced "The Royal Rival," a version of "Don César de Bazan," which ran for some time at the Duke of York's Theatre, and afterwards Mr. H. V. Esmond's "Sentimentalist," which, however, failed to repeat the success of "The Wilderness."

Mr. Hawtrey's new venture, at the end of the run of "A Message from Mars," was Mr. Anstey's "Man from Blankley's," which proved no less amusing on the stage than in the pages of Punch.

At the Criterion Mr. Bourchier contented himself with revivals of "Wheels within Wheels" and "Mamma" till the autumn, when Mr. Carton's new comedy, "The Undercurrent," made a successful appear

ance.

At the Duke of York's Mr. Parker's romantic farce, "The Swashbuckler," proved somewhat disappointing, although possessing considerable humour and being admirably interpreted by Miss Evelyn Millard and Mr. Herbert Waring, both of whom were afterwards seen at the same theatre in a revival of "Lady Ursula."

Miss Marie Tempest followed up "English Nell" by excellent representations of "Peg Woffington" and "Becky Sharp," and she has certainly justified by success her bold step in forsaking musical comedy for the "legitimate" drama, a remark which also applies to Mr. Seymour Hicks and Miss Ellaline Terriss, since the public have found "Sweet and Twenty" at the Vaudeville to their taste for the best part of a year. In the autumn a little play called "Scrooge" was added to the bill, in which Mr. Hicks gave a really clever impersonation of the miser of the "Christmas Carol."

Mrs. Patrick Campbell, besides various revivals, produced Björnsen's "Beyond Human Power," a grim and striking play, though hardly one calculated to draw the general public.

Mr. Benson had a Shakespearean season at the Comedy, during which, amongst other plays, he produced "Richard II.," "Hamlet," "The Merchant of Venice" and "Coriolanus." In the first named Mr. Benson is undoubtedly at his best, but "Coriolanus" was somewhat overshadowed by the then impending performance of the same play at the Lyceum.

In September was produced at the Garrick “Iris," a new play by Mr. Pinero, entitled in the opinion of many to rank with "The Second Mrs. Tanqueray". Dealing with a not very pleasant subject, Mr. Pinero has written a tragedy of more than ordinary merit, nor did it suffer from its interpreters; Miss Fay Davis had never given a more beautiful impersonation than "Iris,” and very notable, too, was the acting of Messrs. Oscar Asche and Dion Boucicault.

In the autumn Mr. and Mrs. Kendal paid an all too short visit to the St James's, where they successfully revived "The Elder Miss Blossom," and produced "The Likeness of the Night," by Mrs. Clifford, the latter a painful but undoubtedly interesting play.

Space forbids more than a bare enumeration of various other pieces produced during the year, the most noteworthy being “Peril,” revived by Mr. Fred Kerr at the Garrick; "The Queen's Double," produced by Miss Janet Steer, also at the Garrick; "The Royal Necklace” and “A Man of His Word," at the Imperial Theatre; "A Woman in the Case," at the Court; and "The Great Millionaire," the autumn melodrama at Drury Lane.

Of farces the most noteworthy of the year have been "The Night of the Party," produced by Mr. Weedon Grossmith at the Avenue, and "Are You a Mason?" at the Shaftesbury. Mr. Penley revived “Charley's Aunt" and "Uncles and Aunts"; while "The Giddy Goat," "A Tight Corner" and other pieces of a like type saw the light at Terry's and the Strand.

In the shape of an American invasion we have had Mr. Goodwin and Miss Maxine Elliott, who gave yet a third play of Mr. Esmond, "When we were Twenty-One," at the Comedy, while Mr. Gillette throughout the autumn drew crowded houses to the Lyceum by his impersonation of "Sherlock Holmes," an admirable creation set in exciting if somewhat melodramatic surroundings.

Other invaders have been the German Company at the Comedy, and Mme. Sarah Bernhardt and M. Coquelin, who occupied Her Majesty's during the summer. Their principal play was M. Rostand's “L'Aiglon,” which, if hardly so fascinating as "Cyrano de Bergerac," is yet a work of extraordinary interest and provides two magnificent parts for Mme. Bernhardt and M. Coquelin in the ill-fated Duc de Reichstadt and the old grenadier Flambeau. "Cyrano" was also given on several occasions, besides such old favourites as 66 Phèdre," ""Les Précieuses Ridicules," "La Tosca" and "La Dame aux Camélias."

From Japan came Mme. Sadi Yacco and Mr. Otojiro Kawakami, who were seen during the summer at the Criterion. This is not the first appearance of Mme. Sadi Yacco in England, and she undoubtedly proved herself an actress possessed of both charm and power, though her art is fundamentally different from that of our own actresses.

In the domain of musical comedy "San Toy" in December at length drew to a close, after a two years' run at Daly's. "Florodora" was succeeded by the almost equally successful "Silver Slipper" at the Lyric, and "The Messenger Boy" in the fulness of time gave way to "The Toreador" at the Gaiety. "Kitty Grey" at the Apollo, and "H.M.S. Irresponsible," under the command of Mr. Arthur Roberts,

both enjoyed prosperous careers, and Miss Louie Freear successfully bore on her shoulders the entire burden of "A Chinese Honeymoon," produced at the Strand in the autumn.

"The Belle of New York" was successfully revived at the renamed Century Theatre, but other American musical comedies produced during the year, viz., "The Fortune Teller," "The Whirl of the Town," "The Girl from up There" and "The Belle of Bohemia," though characteristically noisy, apparently possessed no compensating advantages.

At the death of Mr. D'Oyly Carte the Savoy passed into new hands, but continued to be conducted on the old lines. Sir Arthur Sullivan died before he had completely finished the music of "The Emerald Isle," of which Captain Basil Hood supplied the libretto. The score was, however, completed by Mr. Edward German, and the piece enjoyed a considerable run. "Ib and Little Christina," also by Captain Hood, failed to draw, and on December 7 "Iolanthe " was once more seen in London after too long an absence, and proved as delightful as ever.

At Christmas, besides the usual number of pantomimes, two or three plays specially for the benefit of children were produced, including "Shock-headed Peter," "The Man that Stole the Castle" and "Bluebell in Fairyland."

III. MUSIC.

The first year of the new century was marked by manifold signs of activity on the part of British musicians, both in composition and performance; and the public appreciation of British music, both at home and on the Continent, was more pronounced than it has been for a long time past. Perhaps the most important event of the year was the production of an English opera in the summer season at Covent Garden, the libretto being the work of Mr. Julian Sturgis, founded on Shakespeare's "Much Ado about Nothing," and the music composed by Dr. Villiers Stanford. In spite of the somewhat niggardly behaviour of the Covent Garden authorities, who allowed only two performances of the opera after having promised three, the work produced a considerable sensation in musical London, and did much to advance the rather lagging cause of English opera. Dr. Stanford has long been known for his consummate musicianship, his catholic taste and his wide artistic sympathies, and in this opera he put forth his best powers, with brilliant results. While not avoiding the use of representative themes, he refrained from following too closely in Wagner's steps, and the music reflects rather the inherited excellencies of many different composers than the definite style of any one master. If the opera has a prototype at all, it is perhaps to be found in Verdi's "Falstaff,” and it is giving high, but not too high, praise to "Much Ado about Nothing" to compare it in brilliance and sparkle, in lightness of touch and in finish of workmanship to the great Italian's comic masterpiece. An excellent performance was secured under the conductorship of Sgr. Mancinelli, the cast including such well-known names as Miss Suzanne Adams, Miss Marie Brema, Mr. Bispham and M. Plançon. Apart from the production of Dr. Stanford's work, the season of grand opera at Covent Garden was singularly uneventful, not to say

uninteresting. There was the first performance in England of Lalo's "Le Roi d'Ys," a work that was produced in Paris as long ago as 1888, and has since had considerable vogue in France. It is not a work of any very serious artistic merit, but it has much of the piquancy and gracefulness characteristic of the nation from which it sprang. Mr. Isidor de Lara's "Messaline," first given in 1899, was thought worthy of revival, though it must be admitted that a further acquaintance with the work does not tend to modify the opinion that the disagreeableness of the subject is by no means atoned for by the value of the musical treatment. Of individual performers, Sgr. Tamagno made a welcome reappearance, and once more electrified his hearers by his extraordinarily forcible and realistic rendering of the title-part in Verdi's "Otello"; Fraulein Ternina repeated her incomparable performance of Isolde to the Tristan of Herr Van Dyck, and still further strengthened her claim to the foremost rank among operatic singers; and Mme. Calvé again won a familiar triumph in "Carmen." The absence of M. Jean de Reszke was severely felt, and there were no signs of the appearance of a new star who could adequately fill the great tenor's place, though Sgr. Anselmi won considerable favour by his refined and attractive singing in "Rigoletto" and "Faust." As usual, throughout the season the cheaper seats in the house were crowded to overflowing, thereby once more demonstrating the fact that there is abundant audience in England for high-class opera at reasonable prices, and pointing to the need of the establishment of a national opera-house, where the claims of pure art could be satisfied without regard to financial considerations.

While on the subject of opera in England, it is interesting to record the revival in April of Purcell's "Dido and Eneas" at the Coronet Theatre, Notting Hill, under the auspices of the Purcell Society, the opera being followed by the quaint "Masque of Love," from the same composer's "Dioclesian." Another notable event was the performance in London of Purcell's music to "A Midsummer-Night's Dream" in concert form. On this occasion several numbers were heard for the first time, the complete score of the work, which had been lost for two centuries, having been recently discovered in the library of the Royal Academy of Music. A comic opera called "Fantasio," by an English composer, Miss Ethel Smyth, had the distinction of being produced at Carlsruhe under the direction of Herr Mottl, and it is to be hoped that English music-lovers will not have to wait long before being given an opportunity of becoming acquainted with the work of their country

woman.

On the Continent the chief operatic events of the year have been the first performances of two music-dramas by Richard Strauss"Guntram" at Prague and "Feuersnoth" at Dresden, and the production at Dresden of M. Paderewski's long-expected opera "Manru.” The latter was brilliantly given, and was received with abundant enthusiasm. Another Bayreuth Festival took place in July and August, this being the twenty-fifth year since the production of the gigantic Nibelungen" tetralogy. The demand for seats was greater than on any previous occasion, and the performances were on the usual high

level of excellence. Besides "Der Ring des Nibelungen," which, as at its original production in 1876, was conducted by Dr. Richter, and "Parsifal," the festival scheme included for the first time "Der Fliegende Holländer," which, with Herr Mottl as conductor and Herr Van Rooy in the principal part, was given an almost ideally perfect representation.

In the sphere of chamber music the most notable event of the year was the visit to London of Dr. Joachim and his famous quartet in the spring. Six concerts were given in St. James's Hall, the performers being placed on a raised platform in the middle of the hall according to the practice prevailing in Berlin, thus giving a far larger proportion of the audience a chance of hearing satisfactorily than is possible under the ordinary arrangement. It is satisfactory to record that the public assembled in unusually large numbers to hear quartet playing, which, in point of ensemble and artistic unanimity of style, has perhaps never been paralleled, certainly never surpassed. The programmes exhibited a representative selection of the masterpieces of chamber music, special attention being devoted to the works of Beethoven's third period, in the interpretation of which the Joachim quartet display their finest qualities. These quartets, which are so difficult for the ordinary amateur to appreciate, seemed to acquire a new significance and beauty under the guidance of the great violinist and his colleagues, and what had before appeared disjointed or chaotic was for the first time given organic cohesion. It would be false flattery to say that Dr. Joachim's powers are entirely untouched by the hand of time, but he still retains the secret of a style so noble and dignified that he is able to render the great works of Mozart, Beethoven and Brahms with a perfection that none of his younger rivals have approached. And when it is added that the three other players in the quartet are thoroughly imbued with his spirit and act in loyal co-operation with him, there is no difficulty in understanding the excellence of the artistic result achieved.

The visit of the Joachim quartet served, among other things, to draw attention to the loss which London suffers in not possessing a permanent company of players, who by constant practice and association would be able to attain to the highest standard of ensemble performance. There can be no question that the artistic value of the time-honoured Popular Concerts would be immensely enhanced if this desirable change could be introduced. It is true that in the early part of the year the directors made a move in this direction by engaging M. Ysaye's quartet for a series of concerts. But M. Ysaye, great player as he undoubtedly is, has not the peculiar qualities required in the first violin of a string quartet. His artistic personality is so domineering and masterful that he cannot refrain from treating the three other strings somewhat as if their duty was to supply an accompaniment to his solo performance, and this defect was emphasised by the fact that the other members of his quartet were quite undistinguished players, who were neither willing nor able to assert themselves. In the autumn season the old system was reverted to; a new leader generally appeared at each concert, and the performances were neither worse nor better than what was to be expected from scratch organisations, who in many cases had never