The Opposite House: A Novel — page 112: what you’re looking at

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

The Opposite louse. 107 musicians softly began the air: ‘A Wanderer with Staff in Hand.” The curtain rolled up, and a low murmur of satis- faction ran through the audience. ‘The lights had been turned down, and, amid the darkness, glowed the bright tableau of the wanderer in the arms of his gray-haired mother. Loud applause rewarded the artists. Again the curtain rose, revealing a lonely, dusky convent garden, at whose right was a carved image of the Madonna, while, amid the many vines, knelt a pallid woman in the garb and veil of a nun. “How beautiful the little English girl looks!” ran through the ranks of the spectators ina whisper. ‘She just suits the tableau.” Thus picture followed picture. A scene from the ‘“Meistersinger” How superbly Herr von Esen personated Haus Sachs,and what a charming Httle Eva Bertha von Lenk made! Undine rose from the cool waves; Wignon alternately bewailed her sor- rows and rattled her tambourine, and flames cast their vivid glare upon the picturesque camp of the gypsies. The tableaux swiftly succeeded one an- other, with constant variety. Suddenly a servant moved rapidly through the crowd and requested Doctor Brand and his com- panion to follow him. Traugott thought that there must be some mistake; but there was no time for CoOmicboook<s C@ 5}