32 MUSICAL AMERICA January 1, 1916
now Sir Herbert, of course - helped that the two are mutually exclusive. me to make up for the part. He had There is room for serious and for light David Bispham Recalls Amusing played the famous role himself, and opera. But musical comedy was a danger he was anxious to have my make-up to opera in so- far as, being a paying and above reproach, for we were great comparatively long established concern, it Mishaps in His Operatic Career friends. had a tendency to draw to itself singers In those days-it was more than a whose right place is the opera stage. NE of the most amusing incidents in "Now you may step off, sir." dozen years ago--papier mache noses Webster Millar, the Manchester tenor, is 0 my operatic career took place on I never heard an audience laugh as were not in use as they are to-day. an example in point. In musical comedy Falstaff's huge, bulbous nose had to be his fine voice and talent for dramatic ex the opening night of a revival of "The loud and as long. But that was only one of the mishaps built up out of "nose paste"-sticky pression were utterly thrown away, for Flying Dutchman" at Covent Garden, of that same performance. It's a tradi stuff, very much like putty. the music of Mr. Edwardes's productions London, relates David Bispham in the tion among the German singers that If I do say it myself, my make-up was was as uninteresting and as little varied New York World. things never go right at Covent Garden. a work of art. But my costume was so as their titles. This was the cause of the heavy-! was padded out with a dozen Edwardes failure to establish a type of As you know, the Dutchman makes his At the close of the third act Senta is supposed to throw herself into the sea suits and a huge stomacher-that I was entertainment which will endure. If he entrance on the deck of a ship which is to join her lover. Well, the boat was perspiring copiously long before I made had possesed an ear for good music as so manoeuvered that he can step off on moored so close to the shore--the first my first entrance. However, the ap well as the eye for scenic effects we the shore and begin his song. The ship act setting is used in the third act-that plause I received when I went on made might have had English light opera to up for my discomfort until, in the midst is on wheels, and usually the stage hands Mme. Gadski, who was the Senta that supplement Lecocq and Offenbach. But he evening, was unable to find a space large of my most important song, I felt my had not even the courage to search for only have to push it about. But on this enough for her to disappear in. She nose slipping from my face! I tried to the men to give him the kind of music occasion one of the wheels got stuck in put it back, but without success. In he needed. Most of his musical comedies a crack on the stage before the ship had to climb over the boat, and then, the distance being too great to jump, she spite of everything I · could do it fell to had music which was trivial without reached the proper position and I was the stage, in full view of the audience. being in the least gay, while the quality left standing on the deck unable to reach carefully lowered herself over the rail and dropped to the stage. A titter began in the orchestra chairs of the comedy depended almost entirely the shore and begin my song. To jump and soon grew into a roar of laughter, on the skill of the performer. was out of the question, and to climb * * * · for in my efforts to kick the paste nose dowri and walk across the water equally Maurice Grau, the former director of out of the way my foot slipped on the Another success was scored by the absurd; so I kept my place. The con the Metropolitan Opera Company, was sticky stuff and I fell flat on the stage Philharmonic Trio in a concert given re· ductor threw down his baton and tore prodigal in some respects, but niggardly floor! cently in the Grace Reformed Church, hi s hair. The musicians in the orches in many others. When we went on tour, York, Pa. The members of the trio are tra, not knowing what had happened, for instance, he disliked to carry more While mishaps* were* *more frequent at A. A. Knoch, Allen S. Bond and W. L. began standing up and peering over the scenery than he had to. old Covent Garden than here in America, Rohrbach. footlights. The audience, of course, was One night we gave a performance of we used to have our share of them at beginning to wonder at the delay and for "Lohengrin" in Cleveland with stock the Metropolitan. I remember one per LUCILE a few moments it looked like a terrible scenery. The local manager had assured formance of "Tannhauser" in which I disaster. us that he had a river drop in the appeared. In the first act, you remem However, one of the stage hands came theater, and so our first .act drop for ber,· there are several transformation heroically to my rescue. In full view of "Lohengrin," showing the River Scheidt scenes while Venus tries to persuade ORRELL' the audience he placed a plank between near Antwerp, was left in New York. Tannhauser to remain longer with her. 'CELLIST the shore and the boat, and in an audible Imagine my surprise, when I turned When the drop curtain was raised to re lUnnagement, R. E. JOHNSTON whisper announced: around after finishing my first song, to veal Leda and the swan I was dum 1451 Droa