Theatres.—There are altogether in London a large number. Of these the following are the principal:—Her Majesty’s Theatre, on the western side of the Haymarket, is the original of the two Italian Opera Houses in London; it was built in 1790, on the site of an older theatre, burnt down in 1867, and re-built in 1869. It is occasionally unoccupied. The freehold of some of the boxes has been sold for as much as £8,000 each. The Opera Season is generally from March to August; but the main attractions and the largest audiences are from May to July. The Royal Italian Opera House, occupying the site of the former Covent Garden Theatre, was built in 1858, on the ruins of one destroyed by fire. The building is very remarkable, both within and without. Under the lesseeship of Mr. Gye, and the conductorship of Mr. (now Sir Michael) Costa, operas have been produced here with a completeness scarcely paralleled in Europe. When not required for Italian Operas, the building is occupied usually by an English Opera Company, or occasionally for miscellaneous concerts. The Floral Hall, adjoining this theatre, is occasionally engaged for concerts. Drury Lane Theatre, the fourth on the same site, was built in 1812; its glories live in the past, for the legitimate drama now alternates there with entertainments of a more spectacular and melodramatic character. The Haymarket Theatre, exactly opposite Her Majesty’s, was built in 1821; under Mr. Buckstone’s management, comedy and farce are chiefly performed. The Adelphi Theatre, in the Strand, near Southampton Street, was rebuilt in 1858; it has for forty years been celebrated for melodramas, and for the attractiveness of its comic actors. The present lessee, Mr. Webster, has the merit of having introduced many improvements for the comfort of the audience. The Lyceum Theatre, or English Opera House, at the corner of Wellington Street, Strand, was built in 1834; it was intended as an English Opera House, but its fortunes have been fluctuating, and the performances are not of a definite kind. The Princess’s Theatre, on the north side of Oxford Street, was built in 1830; after a few years of opera and miscellaneous dramas, it became the scene of Mr. Charles Kean’s Shakspearian revivals, and now resembles most of the other theatres. St. James’s Theatre, in King Street, St. James’s, was built for Braham, the celebrated singer; it was a losing speculation to him; and although a really beautiful theatre inside, its managerial arrangements have been very changeable of late years. The Olympic Theatre, in Wych Street, Drury Lane, is small, but well conducted and successful. The Strand Theatre, near the Olympic, has been remarkable for its burlesque extravaganzes. The New Globe Theatre, Newcastle Street, Strand, and the Gaiety, 345 Strand, and lastly the Vaudeville, (for comedy, farce, and burlesque,) near the Adelphi, are all of comparatively recent erection; so are the Court Theatre, near Sloane Square; the Charing Cross Theatre, King William Street; the Queen’s Theatre, Long Acre, late St. Martin’s Hall; and the Holborn Theatre. The New Royalty, or Soho Theatre, in Dean Street, Soho, was once a private theatre, belonging to Miss Kelly, the celebrated actress. The Prince of Wales’s Theatre, in Tottenham Street, is the old Tottenham Theatre in a renovated and greatly improved condition. Some of Mr. T. W. Robertson’s best comedies have been produced here within the last few years. Sadler’s Wells, near the New River Head, was at one time remarkable for the ‘real water’ displayed in melodramas. The Marylebone Theatre, between Regent’s Park and the Edgeware Road; the Grecian, in the City Road; the Britannia, at Hoxton; the City of London, in Norton Folgate; the Standard, in Shoreditch; and the Pavilion, in Whitechapel, are Theatres noticeable for the large numbers of persons accommodated, and the lowness of the prices of admission. On the Surrey side of the Thames are Astley’s Amphitheatre, in the Westminster Road, (the Circus is now removed;) the Victoria Theatre, in the Waterloo Road; and the Surrey Theatre, in Blackfriars Road. The performances at these several theatres commence at an hour varying from half-past six (some of the minors) to half-past eight (two Opera houses) in the evening, but the most usual hour is seven; and, as a general rule, there is half-price at a later hour in the evening. During the run of the Christmas pantomimes there are a few additional performances at two in the afternoon. It has recently been estimated that 4,000 persons are employed at the London theatres, earning daily food for probably 12,000; and that the public spend about £350,000 at those places annually.

Concerts.—The principal Concert Rooms in London are, Exeter Hall, St. James’s Hall, Hanover Square Rooms, the Music Hall, in Store Street, the Floral Hall, Willis’ Rooms, and the Queen’s Concert Room, attached to Her Majesty’s Theatre. All these places are engaged for single concerts; but there are also musical societies and choral bodies which give series of concerts every year. Among these are the Sacred Harmonic Society, (Exeter Hall,) the National Choral Society, (same place,) the Philharmonic Society, (Hanover Square Rooms,) Mr. Henry Leslie’s Choir, the New Philharmonic, (St. James’s Hall,) the Musical Society, the Musical Union, the Glee and Madrigal Society, the Beethoven Society, the Monday Popular Concerts, &c. The Oratorio performances at Exeter Hall, by the Sacred Harmonic and National Choral Societies, are considered to be the finest of the kind in Europe. There are occasional Handel Choral Meetings at the same place, under Sir Michael Costa, supported by 1,600 singers.

Tavern Music Halls.—Numerous Rooms connected with taverns have been opened in London, within the last few years, for musical performances. The music is a singular compound of Italian, English, and German operatic compositions, fairly executed, with comic songs of the most extravagant kind; to these are added what the performers please to term ‘nigger’ dances, and athletic and rope-dancing feats—the whole accompanied by drinking and smoking on the part of the audience. The chief among these places are, Canterbury Hall, near the Westminster Road; the Oxford, in Oxford Street; the Royal Music Hall, late Weston’s, in Holborn; the Alhambra, in Leicester Square; the Philharmonic, Islington, near the Angel. Evans’, in Covent Garden, does not as a rule admit females, though ladies, friends of the proprietor, &c., are occasionally allowed to look down on the proceedings from wired-in private boxes above the line of the stage. Evans’ has long been honourably known for its old English glees, catches, madrigals, &c., good supper, and gentlemanly arrangements and audiences. The Raglan, the Winchester, the South London, and others, are of plainer character. Charge, usually 6d. to 1s. Mr. Morton, the former proprietor of Canterbury Hall, provided a capital gallery of pictures, (Punch’s ‘Royal Academy over the Water,’) placed freely open to the visitors to the Music Hall.

Entertainments.—There is a class of London amusements, called Entertainments, which has come much into fashion within a few years. They generally last about two hours, from eight till ten in the evening. The late Mr. Albert Smith was one of the first to commence these entertainments, with his ‘Overland Route,’ ‘Mont Blanc,’ and ‘China;’ and the names of other well known entertainers are, Mr. Woodin, Mr. and Mrs. German Reed, Mr. John Parry, Mr. A. Sketchley, Mr. and Mrs. Howard Paul, &c. Delineation of character, painted scenery, descriptive sketches, singing, music, ventriloquism—some or all of these supply the materials from which these entertainments are got up. Sometimes the programme of performances is of a less rational character, depending on the incongruities of so-called negro melodists; while occasionally a higher tone is adopted, as in ‘Readings,’ by various persons. The principal halls or rooms in which these entertainments are held are the Egyptian Hall, Piccadilly; the Gallery of Illustration, Regent Street; the minor rooms at St. James’s Hall; and the Music Hall, in Store Street. The prices of admission generally vary from 1s. to 3s. The leading pages of the daily newspapers, and more especially of the Times, will always shew which of these entertainments are open at any particular time.Miscellaneous Amusements.—The sources of information just mentioned will also notify particulars of numerous other places of amusement, which need not be separately classified. Among these are the Polytechnic Institution, Regent Street, (famous for Mr. Pepper’s ‘Ghosts;’) and Madame Tussaud’s Waxwork, Baker Street, Portman Square, (a favourite exhibition with country visitors.) To all such places the charge of admission is 1s. Among Pleasure Gardens, for music, dancing, tight and slack rope performances, &c., Cremorne Gardens, at Chelsea, St. Helena Gardens, at Rotherhithe, the Riverside Gardens, at North Woolwich, and the Surrey Gardens, near Walworth, are the principal; Vauxhall Gardens have disappeared as places of amusement, and have been supplanted by bricks and mortar. The so-called Tea Gardens are much more numerous, and are supported rather by the profit on the beverages sold, than by the fee charged for admission.

A few additional particulars concerning Free Exhibitions, Shilling Exhibitions, and Exhibitions available only by Introduction, are given in the Appendix.