The Mysteries of the Court of London — page 100: what you’re looking at

Machine-transcribed from the original scan — historical spelling and the odd misread are preserved.

THE MYBTERIES OF TIE COURT. e variations of atmosphere, with their eccompanying rheums and coughs, whatever personal beauty the ballet-girl may have originally possessed soon wanes, fades, and disappears. Some of them too, with sorrow be it said, lead a course of life which is of a nature to aggravate all the above-mentioned evils ; and thus, when viewed close, they are very different from what they appear to be when seen from the house, bounding amidst a blaze of light upon the elastic boards of the stage. That bloom whieh appears to rest so naturally upon their cheeks as they are thus viewed from a distance, looks but a mere daub when beheld closeo—a thick coat of rouge; yet not always so thick as to prevent the haggard traits of the countenance from appearing through ! But we will not extend this picture to a length intruding upon the current of our tale. Having ere now stated that there is no Green Room at the Opera House in the Haymarket, we may observe that at the time of which we are writing the Concert Room, above mentioned, sometimes served as a lounge for the performers, and likewise fur those privileged aristocrats and fashionables who penetrated behind the scenes. One evening, a week after the incidents related in the preceding chapters, the Concert Ruom was more than usually crowded by such visitors. The opera performed that night was I Puritani ; and during an interval between the Acts, Grisi, Lablache, and other eminent artistes engaged at the esta- blishment, were gathered in a group conversing to- gether in that Concert Room. Dispersed about, were the other performers in the Opera, and like- wise the dancers in attendance upon the ballet. persons above and the persons below. Then, when scenes are to be shifted, all is haste and bustle—yet no confusion. Every one has his allotted task— every one knows what he has to do. But still the brilliant ladies lounging in their boxes, and the fashionable elegants whispering soft nonsense in their ears during the brief intervals of the scenes or the ones between the acts, little imagine the amount of activity which is prevailing behind the eurtain, from the depths under the stage to the heights to which the iron staircase leads, in order that the next soene on which that curtain shall rise may be presented with an accuracy so as to produce the most perfect effect. Such is the Opera—a little world in itself, and the management of which involves an expense s0 enormous that it is no wonder lessees require high prices and well-filled houses in order to maintain it. And when we to reflect upon the colossal salaries that are exacted by the Stars of the Song or the Dance—when we count the numbers of mu- sicians in the orchestra and the hosts of minor characters who sppear upon the stage,—remember- ing that all must be paid certain salarics, be they lesser or greater,—we cannot fail to be struck by the enormity of the whole outlay required, and the commensurate risk that has to be run on the part of the speculative individual who undertakes the management of the Opera. There is no apartment at this establishment bearing the name of the Green Room, as at the great national theatres: Certain noblemen and aristQcratic fashionables have the privilege of pass- ing ehind the scenes; and in the precincts thereof they lounge and loiter about on the nights of per- formance, chatting with the ballet-girls, and dis- | Although we have stated that as a general rule the pensing their platitudes, their impertinences, or | ballet-girls will not bear a very close inspection—or their flippancies to those of the female artistes who | at least that such near view is likely to produce somite come in their way. But few of the opera-dancers, | feeling of disappointment—yet there are of course when beheld close, display even the shadow of the ; excpptions to this rule; and a few beautiful croa- charms which they appear to possess when viewed j tures may be seen amongst them. Nor was it from a distance. They are for the most part ex- | otherwise on the night to which we are specially ro- ceedingly thin : for it must be remembered that they | ferring; and those whe were best-looking, as a invariably practise for several hours each day. The| matter of course, engrossed the principal share of ballet-master is almost constantly in attendance; | attention on the part of the privileged loungers , and if a visitor, oscorted by some official of the|from outside. Rest assured, reader, that Angela | establishment, peeps into the place any time between | Vivaldi was not present in the Concert Room. eleven in the forenoon and five in the evening, he|Though engaged to dance that evening, she re- will see a bevy of those girls dancing, piroustting, | mained in her own dreesing-chamber until the ap- bounding, and practising other saltatory exploits{ pointed hour came; and then all intruders from be- upon the stage, to the notes of a violin. This con-| fore the curtain were compelled to retire. Such was stant. exercise therefore keeps the dancers thin, andj her positive stipulation ; and the rule was as ri- renders many of them positively emaciated. Their’s| gorously observed as it could possibly be. is the hardest life—their’s the most wearying toil,| But Mademoiselle D’Alembert was very far from of any am the theatrical contingents. Then,| being so particular; and she was conspicuous too, though the Stars of the Ballet are handsomely | amongst the Stars of the Dance there. remunerated, the ordinary dancers are but indif.- ferently paid—the lowest in rank wretchedly enough! When the performance is over, these ill- paid creatures may be seen issuing forth from the hot and feverish atmosphere of the theatre, having just thrown off their gauzy raiment and huddled on their own clothing, too often poor and scant even tc wretchedness ; and thus from that torrid region they emerge into the chill of the night air, perhaps to face a deluging rain, or at some seasons a nipping frost. Their health suffers—their constitutions arc undermined—and thus with the constant wear and tear of practice, and thoes liabilities to sudden Apparelled in a Spanish dress, her fine figure was set off by that costume to the utmost advantage : so that the somewhat luxurious fullness of her shapo was well displayed. She was not one who grew thin, much less emaciated, by her avocations : for being a thorough proficient in the dance she practised but little; and having a carriage to convey her to or from the scene of her Terpsichorean displays, and good clothes to muffle herself up in, she ran no chance of impairing her health through colds and coughs. Having a tablo, too, well supplied with every luxury, and being addicted to gormandiszing, she maintained herself in a comfortable condition of —_ —og ElOOO , COL SS COMM