Combination Italian Opera Farewell Performance

During her stay in America, Mme. Rosa has made more friends and done nobler service than any singer who ever came here; the virtual founder of English opera in America; warm regard with which she is cherished by the public; her perfect method and wonderful voice; universal esteem won by Carl Rosa; Santley’s growing reputation; keen regret at Wachtel’s departure.

“Those who witnessed the scenes at the Academy of Music last night will not soon forget them. Never perhaps in the history of opera was such enthusiasm displayed. Long before the doors were opened crowds of people had congregated anxious to obtain an entrance. As soon as an admittance was possible the public poured in in a constant stream, until there was not left any space where spectators could be accommodated. By eight o’clock the sale of tickets had to be stopped, as the house was crammed to its utmost capacity. If any proof were wanting of the readiness of the people of New York to support good opera it was furnished last night beyond cavil. Certainly the programme was unusually tempting, and the near departure of the celebrated combination company contributed to give increased interest to last night’s performance. Probably it was the last time that the four great artists who formed the chief strength of the company will ever sing together. The programme also was calculated to present all the artists at their best. Each one had won well-deserved laurels in the scenes selected for representation, and high as were the expectations formed by the public they were fully justified by the event. It is true that the overflowing audience were not disposed to be critical. That was visible at a glance. Kindly looks beamed on all faces, and it was evident from the first moment that the people came not to examine the merit or demerit of the performance, but to confer a reward that they had made up their mind had been already well earned. The performance included the first act of the ‘Postilion of Longjumeau,’ with Wachtel’s celebrated whip song, with which he first captured the hearts of the German portion of the community; the second act of ‘The Bohemian Girl;’ the second act of ‘Il Trovatore,’ concluding with the fourth act of the ‘Huguenots.’ Wachtel’s singing of the whip song put the audience in the best humor, and it is only justice to him to say that he sang it admirably. He was in excellent voice and evidently had made up his mind to leave as pleasing an impression as possible on the minds of his hearers. Through the night he sang with spirit; but his great triumph was achieved in the aria from ‘Trovatore’ ‘Di quella Pira.’ By one of those magnificent efforts in which he loves to indulge he electrified the house and secured a rapturous recall which was repeated, over and again. If possible, Santley was more finished and effective than ever. His magnificent vocalization and the quality of tenderness and feeling which belongs to his singing were never displayed with so much force and charm. His ‘Il balen del suorriso’ has obtained so great a fame that it is almost needless to say that it was given in a manner beyond all praise. But it was in the singing of Wallace’s delightful ballad, ‘The Heart Bowed Down’ that Santley achieved his great success last night. The enthusiasm of the house was thoroughly aroused, and the audience insisted on his appearing before the curtain half a dozen times. In the same opera Madame Parepa-Rosa made a decided hit in the rendering of ‘Marble Halls,’ which she sang with brilliancy and exquisite feeling. She exhausted all the resources of her unequaled powers of vocalization, and in answer to an enthusiastic recall, sang ‘The Star Spangled Banner,’ which secured for her an ovation. Miss Phillips appeared to advantage in the rendering of ‘Stride la Vampa’ which she sings with a force and expressiveness few prime donne can equal. Tom Carl sang with artistic finish and sweetness in the rôle of Thaddeus in the ‘Bohemian Girl.’ Those who are conversant with the capabilities of the combination company will understand how admirably the selections were made to present each artist at his, or her, best, and the result was such a performance as has rarely, if ever, been witnessed on this Continent. At the close Carl Rosa was called before the curtain and presented with a handsome gold mounted baton. Having bowed his acknowledgements, he was about to retire, but was recalled by the audience and returned thanks for the kind and generous support which had been extended to him by the American public and expressing a hope that he would soon return to America.”

“The scene witnessed at the Academy of Music last night was one memorable in its history. The house was so crowded that at 8 o’clock the sale of tickets was stopped, and those who came later found that it was only with the greatest difficulty that their seats could be reached. The audience was determined to be pleased with everything, and their kindly enthusiasm quickly communicated itself to the artists on the stage. The programme was arranged so as to form, as it were, a review of the different operatic enterprises in which Madame Rosa has been engaged during her sojourn in this country. German opera opened the evening, Wachtel and Miss Doria singing in an act of ‘The Postilion of Longjumeau,’ the former receiving the usual encore for the whip scene, and introducing one of Abt’s songs. Then came an act of Balfe’s ‘Bohemian Girl,’ in which Madame Rosa sang the ‘Marble Halls,’ and Mr. Santley created an immense sensation in ‘The Heart bowed down,’ a melody in which he introduced a few alterations well adapted to display the compass of his voice. In this act Madame Rosa introduced the ‘Star-Spangled Banner,’ and Mr. Karl sang very gracefully the music of Thaddeus.

Then followed extracts from the second and third acts of ‘Trovatore,’ including the gypsey scene for Miss Phillips, the Il balen for Mr. Santley, and the Di quella pira for Wachtel. The entertainment concluded with the fourth act of the ‘Huguenots,’ in which Parepa-Rosa, Wachtel and Santley distinguished themselves.

Of course such a medley performance does not become amenable to criticism. It was simply an occasion for the public to express their enthusiastic admiration of the different artists. The applause was really tremendous, and the flowers costly and numerous. Santley, after Il balen, was called out four times, Wachtel received similar honors after his high C in the ‘Trovatore’ aria, and Madame Rosa awakened equal enthusiasm, in which Miss Phillips shared. At the close of the programme, amid the bravos of the men and the handerchief-waving of the ladies, all the artists appeared again; the prima donna leading forward Carl Rosa, who in his turn dragged out his partner, Mr. Neuendorf. In answer to loud calls for Santley, Mr. Rosa made a brief speech, expressing his thanks to the public for their liberal support, and announced his intention of revisiting this country at some future day.”

“The capacity of the Academy of Music, in respect of seats and standing-room, was tested last evening with a severity of which the most brilliant representations of the season had offered no example. The occasion of the crowded condition of the house was the farewell performance of Mme. Parepa-Rosa, Herr Wachtel, and Mr. Santley. It is to be regretted that the pressure upon our columns forbids a full review of the incidents of the entertainment. More genuine and more continuous enthusiasm has never prevailed. The encores and recalls were unnumbered. The first act of the ‘Postilion of Longjumeau,’ sung in German; act the second of ‘The Bohemian Girl,’ rehearsed in English; the second act and part of the third of ‘Il Trovatore’ and that of the fourth act of ‘Gli Ugonotti,’ all afforded equal delight. In the fraction of Adam’s delicious work, Herr Wachtel’s spirited rendering of Chapelou’s rondo, and his exquisite recital of Abt’s ‘Goodnight, my Dearest Child,’ were most forcible. In ‘The Bohemian Girl’ Mme. Parepa-Rosa’s delivery of ‘The Star Spangled Banner,’—executed by request—and Mr. Santley’s beautiful and impressive interpretation of ‘The Heart Bowed Down,’ elicited the most marked demonstrations of satisfaction. In the selection from ‘Il Trovatore,’ Mr. Santley’s magnificent singing of ‘Il balen,’ a performance to be remembered—and Herr Wachtel’s magnetic reading of ‘Di quella pira,’ were the features. In ‘Gli Ugonotti,’ Herr Wachtel’s ‘Ah! dillo ancor,’ and the closing duet between Raoul and Valentine were loudest applauded. The last scene of all, however, was the most effective. When the curtain fell after the last bar of Meyerbeer’s music had been played, a rare demonstration of admiration for the talent of the principal artists, and of gratitude for their labors was made. Mme. Parepa-Rosa and Herr Wachtel came first before the drop, and only disappeared to return with Mr. Carl Rosa and Herr Neuendorff. A cry for Mr. Santley proceeding from all parts of the auditorium, compelled the reappearance, in travelling attire, of that gentleman. Then cheers arose, and handkerchiefs were waved and flowers were showered upon artists and managers. The tumult was only ended by the advance of Mr. Rosa in the new role of a speech-maker. The skilled and industrious leader approved himself as competent an orator as he is a conductor.  In a brief address he thanked the public for their appreciation and support. His words also foreshadowed a speedy renewal of relations between himself and his audience. After so successful a season, the promise was an agreeable one, and it was greeted with evident pleasure. After the exertions and the results of the past few weeks, all persons will await its fulfillment with impatience, but with no doubts as to its fruit.”

“Nothing could have surpassed the enthusiasm of the multitude which crowded the Academy of Music last night on the farewell appearance of the remarkable opera company with which Messrs. Rosa and Neuendorff have delighted the town during the past month. Early in the evening the box-keepers refused to sell any more tickets. Every spot from which a view of the stage could be caught or a sound could be heard was occupied. The boxes were radiant; the parquet and balcony were jammed; the amphitheater was a wonderfully dense mass of human beings; and every lobby was full. The performance, consisting of selections from four different operas, naturally does not invite criticism, though it could well bear it, for the artists were in good voice and high spirits, and caught a great deal of the enthusiasm which prevailed among the audience. An Act from the ‘Postilion of Longjumeau,’ in German, gave Mr. Wachtel an opportunity to introduce his famous whip song, which roused a lively demonstration in the amphitheater, and was followed, after a second recall, by Abt’s ‘Good Night.’ One Act of the ‘Bohemian Girl,’ in English, presented Madame Rosa, Mr. Tom Karl, and Mr. Santley, Madame Rosa singing ‘I dreamt that I dwelt in marble halls,’ and giving for an encore no less a composition than ‘The Star Spangled Banner,’ whereat the house of course was delighted. Mr. Santley sang ‘The Heart Bowed Down’ so finely that the audience seemed unable to get enough of it, for he was called back again and again. Next came various selections ‘Trovatore,’ the ‘Stride la Vampa,’ and duet by Miss Phillipps and Wachtel, Mr. Santley’s ‘Il balen,’ and Wachtel’s ‘Di quella pira,’ and the evening wound up with the Benediction of the Poniards, and great duet between Valentine and Raoul, from ‘The Huguenots,’ in which Madame Rosa and Wachtel were as magnificent as usual. All through the evening there had been avalanches of flowers, and at the close of the performance the demonstrations passed all precedent. Everybody was called out four or five times. Madame Rosa and Wachtel were loaded with gifts. There were cries for Miss Phillipps, but she did not appear. Mr. Santley’s presence was demanded with an emphasis that bore unmistakable testimony to his popularity, and when he at last was led forward, dressed for the street, the audience rose at him. Madame Rosa’s adieu was accompanied by every possible testimonial of the esteem in which she is held. Mr. Carl Rosa was loudly called for, and with difficulty was induced to step before the curtain, where some one from the audience presented him with a handsome basket of flowers and an ivory baton, richly carved and heavily mounted with gold. He made a short and very good speech of thanks, and pleased everybody by promising to come back to New-York before long with an opera company as good as the one which is just breaking up. Mr. Rosa was obliged to show himself three times. On the second occasion he created a good deal of amusement by violently propelling the modest Mr. Neuendorff upon the stage, and claiming for him a share in the honors of the evening. So came to an appropriately sensational end the most brilliant opera season New-York has known, and, with the warmest feelings of admiration and regard, we bid farewell to the departing artists, trusting to see them all on our stage together once more before many months have passed.”