could wish, and seems almost a part of the beautiful theatre, which furnishes such a fine frame for the various pictures presented on the stage. The first scene (by Mr. Hoyt) represents Pedrillo's Post House, while in the background is a view of mountains and forests, fading away into the misty distance. The shades of green cannot be described. They remind me of the evanescent bloom upon the eucalyptus leaf, which as soon as you touch it is sure to evanesce. The Hall in the Chateau of Galogardos, occupies the stage during act second. The sombre pillars with their grotesque decorations look gloomy enough until the entrance of Anita arrayed in queenly attire when "Presto," the place is illuminated by candelabra containing scores of electric lights of various hues. This scene is by Mr. Merry. The opera concludes with a grand review of the "Knights of St. Jago" (all girls, by the way) and it may readily be doubted if, with all the "Amazon Marches" to which the public has been accustomed, anything of the kind has been seen here. The parade takes place in the Lace Palace, a fantastically beautiful structure, of which Mr. Hoyt is the architect. It seems as though a series of snow crystals had been magnified and melted together, so immaculate in coloring and so delicate in design is it. As it bursts upon our vision the orchestra strikes up a march. I suppose the march was all right, but there was so much to be seen, that I at least had no time to listen to it, for from the second story of the palace which must be thirty or forty feet in height, appeared a line of knights who slowly descended the staircase. As above stated they were all girls, clad in armor which was brilliant and costly as far as it went. I am obliged to make this qualification for the reason that, should one of those frightful devices of the ancients, the chariot armed with scythes, mow through the ranks of those lovely troopers, it would make melancholy havoc with their nether limbs. So poorly are those members protected in fact that I was just getting ready to be properly shocked, for the sake of my fair companion, and started to hide my blushes behind my opera glass, but on reaching for it, found that she was contemplating the spectacle herself through those very lenses. The army marched about the stage and then behind the scenes; the army marched up the stairs and then marched down again; they split up into all sorts of figures and came out all right again. Of course the music was going all the while too, but that did not seem to put them out in the least. And still they came and still they went. After the curtain fell on the happy couples, the audience had the long wished for opportunity to walk about through the various passage ways in this artistic edifice. There is such a variety of novel contrivances for the sake of promoting the comfort of the dear public, that I should like to spend an hour or two some day in examining them closely. The manner in which myriads of little draughtlets furnish the audience with cool fresh air, without giving anyone a cold is worthy of note, so what with provisions against fire, cold and suffocation, the physical wants are satisfied as fully as are the intellectual. The latter are provided for in the manner in which form and color are disposed of. The style of architecture which prevails is Romanesque, quite ornate and brilliantly decorated. The main walls of the auditorium are in panels, these are subdivided into smaller panels containing frescoes or tapestry. The color used in these decorations, draperies etc., range from a dull maroon to an antique pink and old gold. The pillars are light bronze, and all the chairs are upholstered in dark red plush. In the sounding board above, are many incandescent lights behind small glass bulbs, giving the effect of star light when illuminated. The excellent taste manifested even in the smallest details in the arrangement of this theatre reflect great credit upon the manager, Mr. Frank Sanger-to whom the artistically inclined public cannot be too grateful. Mr. Sanger is ably seconded by his business manager, Mr. McCormack. Edgar S. Kelley. In the finishing of the Broadway Theatre, Palmer & Embury were the furniture manufacturers; The American Tile Co. supplied the tiling; Mitchell & Halbach were the decorators; Belcher Art Glass Co. supplied the colored glass and endolithic marbles; Arnold, Constable & Co. were the upholsterers; and C. B. Demarest & Co. made the chairs. |