Marie Collier: a Life

Marie Collier: a life Kim Kemmis A thesis submitted in fulfilment of the requirements for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy Department of History The University of Sydney 2018 Figure 1. Publicity photo: the housewife diva, 3 July 1965 (Alamy) i Abstract The Australian soprano Marie Collier (1927-1971) is generally remembered for two things: for her performance of the title role in Puccini’s Tosca, especially when she replaced the controversial singer Maria Callas at late notice in 1965; and her tragic death in a fall from a window at the age of forty-four. The focus on Tosca, and the mythology that has grown around the manner of her death, have obscured Collier’s considerable achievements. She sang traditional repertoire with great success in the major opera houses of Europe, North and South America and Australia, and became celebrated for her pioneering performances of twentieth-century works now regularly performed alongside the traditional canon. Collier’s experiences reveal much about post-World War II Australian identity and cultural values, about the ways in which the making of opera changed throughout the world in the 1950s and 1960s, and how women negotiated their changing status and prospects through that period. She exercised her profession in an era when the opera industry became globalised, creating and controlling an image of herself as the ‘housewife-diva’, maintaining her identity as an Australian artist on the international scene, and developing a successful career at the highest level of her artform while creating a fulfilling home life. This study considers the circumstances and mythology of Marie Collier’s death, but more importantly shows her as a woman of the mid-twentieth century navigating the professional and personal spheres to achieve her vision of a life that included art, work and family. Statement of originality I certify that the intellectual content of this thesis is the product of my own work and that all the assistance received in preparing this thesis and sources have been acknowledged. Research Integrity Human Research Ethics Committee Thursday, 23 October 2014 Prof Penelope Russell History; Faculty of Arts and Social Sciences Email: [email protected] Dear Penelope I am pleased to inform you that the University of Sydney Human Research Ethics Committee (HREC) has approved your project entitled “Marie Collier reconsent for use of interviews”. Details of the approval are as follows: Project No.: 2014/693 Approval Date: 17 October 2014 First Annual Report Due: 17 October 2015 Authorised Personnel: Russell Penelope; Kemmis Kim; Documents Approved: Date Uploaded Type Document Name 15/10/2014 Other Type 3 Access Agreement Interview original 15/10/2014 Participant Consent Form 6 New PCF 15/10/2014 Participant Info Statement 5 New PIS 15/10/2014 Recruitment Letter/Email 4 New participant letter HREC approval is valid for four (4) years from the approval date stated in this letter and is granted pending the following conditions being met: Condition/s of Approval Continuing compliance with the National Statement on Ethical Conduct in Research Involving Humans. Provision of an annual report on this research to the Human Research Ethics Committee from the approval date and at the completion of the study. Failure to submit reports will result in withdrawal of ethics approval for the project. All serious and unexpected adverse events should be reported to the HREC within 72 hours. All unforeseen events that might affect continued ethical acceptability of the project should be reported to the HREC as soon as possible. Any changes to the project including changes to research personnel must be approved by the HREC before the research project can proceed. Note that for student research projects, a copy of this letter must be included in the candidate’s thesis. Research Integrity T +61 2 8627 8111 ABN 15 211 513 464 Research Portfolio F +61 2 8627 8177 CRICOS 00026A Level 6, Jane Foss Russell E [email protected] The University of Sydney sydney.edu.au NSW 2006 Australia Chief Investigator / Supervisor’s responsibilities: 1. You must retain copies of all signed Consent Forms (if applicable) and provide these to the HREC on request. 2. It is your responsibility to provide a copy of this letter to any internal/external granting agencies if requested. Please do not hesitate to contact Research Integrity (Human Ethics) should you require further information or clarification. Yours sincerely Dr Stephen Assinder Chair Human Research Ethics Committee This HREC is constituted and operates in accordance with the National Health and Medical Research Council’s (NHMRC) National Statement on Ethical Conduct in Human Research (2007), NHMRC and Universities Australia Australian Code for the Responsible Conduct of Research (2007) and the CPMP/ICH Note for Guidance on Good Clinical Practice. Page 2 of 2 Research Integrity Human Research Ethics Committee Thursday, 16 June 2016 Prof Penelope Russell History; Faculty of Arts and Social Sciences Email: [email protected] Dear Penelope I am pleased to inform you that the University of Sydney Human Research Ethics Committee (HREC) has approved your project entitled “Marie Collier consent for interviews”. Details of the approval are as follows: Project No.: 2016/366 Approval Date: 16 June 2016 First Annual Report Due: 16 June 2017 Authorised Personnel: Russell Penelope; Kemmis Kim; Documents Approved: Date Uploaded Type Document Name 08/06/2016 Participant Info Statement PIS clean version 3 08/06/2016 Participant Consent Form PCF clean version 3 06/05/2016 Recruitment Letter/Email Letter to participants 24/03/2016 Interview Questions Interview questions for participant 1 24/03/2016 Interview Questions Interview questions for participants 2 and 3 HREC approval is valid for four (4) years from the approval date stated in this letter and is granted pending the following conditions being met: Condition/s of Approval • Continuing compliance with the National Statement on Ethical Conduct in Research Involving Humans. • Provision of an annual report on this research to the Human Research Ethics Committee from the approval date and at the completion of the study. Failure to submit reports will result in withdrawal of ethics approval for the project. • All serious and unexpected adverse events should be reported to the HREC within 72 hours. Research Integrity T +61 2 8627 8111 ABN 15 211 513 464 Research Portfolio F +61 2 8627 8177 CRICOS 00026A Level 6, Jane Foss Russell E [email protected] The University of Sydney sydney.edu.au NSW 2006 Australia • All unforeseen events that might affect continued ethical acceptability of the project should be reported to the HREC as soon as possible. • Any changes to the project including changes to research personnel must be approved by the HREC before the research project can proceed. • Note that for student research projects, a copy of this letter must be included in the candidate’s thesis. Chief Investigator / Supervisor’s responsibilities: 1. You must retain copies of all signed Consent Forms (if applicable) and provide these to the HREC on request. 2. It is your responsibility to provide a copy of this letter to any internal/external granting agencies if requested. Please do not hesitate to contact Research Integrity (Human Ethics) should you require further information or clarification. Yours sincerely Dr Stephen Assinder Chair Human Research Ethics Committee This HREC is constituted and operates in accordance with the National Health and Medical Research Council’s (NHMRC) National Statement on Ethical Conduct in Human Research (2007), NHMRC and Universities Australia Australian Code for the Responsible Conduct of Research (2007) and the CPMP/ICH Note for Guidance on Good Clinical Practice. Page 2 of 2 vi Contents List of illustrations vii Acknowledgments viii A note on opera titles xi Introduction 1 1. A career and a duty: 1943-1954 19 2. Building a reputation: 1954-1962 58 3. An international star: 1963-1967 97 4. An Australian singer: 1964, 1967 and 1968 145 5. The middle-career diva: 1968-1971 177 6. The mythology of the Tragic Diva: 1971–present 202 Conclusion 236 Appendices 1. Marie Collier’s operatic repertoire 241 2. Marie Collier’s amateur, concert and broadcast repertoire 245 3. Marie Collier’s recordings 247 Bibliography 251 vii List of illustrations Figure 1. Publicity photo: the housewife diva, Frontispiece 3 July 1965 Figure 2. Marie Collier, studio portrait, 1947 19 Figure 3. Argus (Melbourne), 18 March 1952, p. 3. 33 Figure 4. Marie and children, publicity photo, 119 3 July 1965 Figure 5. The diva exhales. Sun (Melbourne), 171 3 April 1968, p. 1. Figure 6. The show must go on. Sun (Melbourne), 172 5 April 1968, p. 4. Figure 7. The fatal window. Herald (Melbourne), 206 9 December 1971, p. 6. Table 1. Deaths in Collier’s repertoire 233 viii Acknowledgements During the long years chained to my desk, tapping away at my keyboard turning out fine phrases and scratching my head, I often fell into the way of thinking that the path of the research student was a lonely one, calling on one’s own resources and resilience to create a work of great craft and stunning insight. But on reflecting on the many events that have happened over that period and of the many things that go into the making of a major thesis, I realise how many people have been involved and how much I have to thank them for. It is not just because of the legal requirement to acknowledge the contributions of others to this work that I record their names here. Prominent among them have been Marie Collier’s family. While not authorising my work in any way, they have been helped me with information, encouragement and hospitality.

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