With these timbers, some lath and plaster, a few bricks, and
a little money, Astley ran up a theatre dedicated to the performance of
interludes and _burlettas_,--that is, of pieces in which the dialogue
was not spoken, but sung, in order to avoid interference with the
patent-rights of Drury Lane and Covent Garden. In our days, this edifice
was known as the Olympic. When I knew this theatre first, it had fallen
into a state of seemingly hopeless decadence. Nobody succeeded there. To
lease the Olympic Theatre was to court bankruptcy and invite collapse.
The charming Vestris had been its tenant for a while. There Liston and
Wrench had delighted the town with their most excellent fooling. There
many of Planche's most sparkling burlesques had been produced. There a
perfect boudoir of a green-room had been fitted up by Bartolozzi's
beautiful and witty daughter; and there Hook and Jerrold, Haynes Bayley
and A' Beckett had uttered their wittiest sayings. But the destiny of
the Olympic was indomitable. There was nae luck about the house; and
Eliza Vestris went bankrupt at last. Management after management tried
its fortunes in the doomed little house, but without success. Desperate
adventurers seized upon it as a last resource, or chose it as a place
wherein to consummate their ruin.
Pages:
170
171
172
173
174
175
176
177
178
179
180
181
182
183
184
185
186
187
188
189
190
191
192
193
194