AUTHORIZATION TO COPY I authorize Kenneth S. Schmidt to scan the book I coauthored entitled, TULSA OPERA CHRONICLES, for the purpose of making a digital copy for use on the internet in the interest of preserving the history of the Tulsa Opera. Further copies may be made from this digital copy provided they are for educational, historical, personal enjoyment, or the promotion of fine art, and for non-profit use. For any other intentions, the copyright statement below applies. Laven Sowell Jack Williams June 15, 2007 Copyright © 1992 by Jack A. Williams and Laven Sowell All rights reserved under International Copyright Law. Contents May not be reproduced in whole or in part in any form without The express written consent of the authors. Library of Congress Catalog Number 92-96949 1 2 Website produced in appreciation of Mr. Laven Sowell by Ken Schmidt, student of Mr. Sowell since September 1964, Edison Jr. High School Boys Glee Club, Edison High School Mixed Chorus, and proud alumnus of the Edison High School Concert Chorus during the 1969 / 1970 school year in Tulsa, Oklahoma. Thank you for teaching me about great music. 3 To compensate for the page numbering difference between the original book and this PDF file, please add 10 to the page number when referencing the Table of Contents and the Index, and then search or scroll in your PDF viewer. 4 5 This book is dedicated to the loyal and talented chorus members, who have for many years given unselfishly of their time and talent to help make opera possible in the city of Tulsa. 6 7 8 ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS For numerous courtesies and for invaluable assistance in assembling the materials for this book, we are indebted to many people. We want especially to thank David R. Milsten, Robert S. Rizley, Ione Sassano Crowder, Isabel Simmons, Mary Helen Markham, Joseph Kestner, Bonnie Duncan, and Virginia Torres for providing much of the information included in the pre-1962 historical accounts of opera in Tulsa. We are also grateful to Edward Purrington, who sent information and pictures from Washington, D.C.; to Dru Young, who spent many hours going through programs to prepare a list of chorus members; to Phil Hammond, who gave considerable editorial assistance. Our appreciation is extended to Tulsa Opera, Inc. for permission to use their production pictures, and to former staff member Reva Anzaldua for her excellent cooperation in obtaining some of the pictures. We owe special debt to Mary D. Graham and Martha Ellsberry, who helped us collect some of the material used in this book. To many others—friends and colleagues who sent pictures, letters, descriptions of personal encounters with artists and conductors—we extend cordial thanks which are no less sincere, although space unfortunately does not permit including all their names. Jack A. Williams Laven Sowell 9 CONTENTS Acknowledgments vii History of Tulsa Opera, 1948-1992 1 Staff of Tulsa Opera, Inc. 77 Tulsa Opera Board Presidents 78 Tulsa Opera Boards of Directors 80 President’s Council 85 Tulsa Opera Annals, Complete Casts 1948-1992 86 Tulsa Opera Orchestra Personnel 113 People Behind the Scenes 117 Rehearsal Pianists and Musical Assistants Chorus Rehearsal Pianists Stage Managers Prop Committee Chairpersons Hospitality Committee Members The Opera Chorus and its Role 120 What the Critics Said About the Chorus 123 Remembering Moments of the Chorus 126 A View of Summer Chorus Rehearsals 140 Some Favorite Autographed Pictures 144 The Tulsa Opera Chorus, 1948-1992 162 About the Authors 171 Index of Operas 172 Index of Names and Organizations 173 Scanning note: Add 10 to the pages listed above 1 0 HISTORY OF TULSA OPERA by Jack A. Williams The question is often asked: “How is it possible for a young city of only moderate size in the American heartland to develop one of the top regional opera companies in the United States?” The answer lies in some special attributes which Tulsa seems to have possessed since its earliest days, around the turn of the century. Those attributes include a rich cultural heritage, outstanding civic leaders who have been both interested in the arts and capable of successfully sustaining them, an abundance of artistic talent in the city, and perhaps most importantly, an almost fierce sense of pride in the community. If one were to list all those who have contributed greatly to the development of Tulsa Opera, it might easily be mistaken for a “Who’s Who in Tulsa History.” It hasn’t, of course, been an easy road to travel. There have been frequent roadblocks and disagreements over appropriate courses of action to take, but those involved have always seemed to rise to the occasion and do what has been necessary for the advancement of quality opera in the city. Opera in Tulsa actually goes back to the beginning of the century, when Tulsa was still a small town and had not yet experienced the oil boom which would later propel it to big-city status. Early opera productions in the city have been described in an article prepared in 1967 by Russell Gideon, a prominent local newspaperman. His article entitled “Opera Houses in Tulsa” appeared in the program for Tulsa Opera’s 1967 production of La Traviata, and has provided most of the information needed to describe the background from which arose the opera company Tulsa now proudly displays. The first record of opera being presented in the city tells of a production of Faust in December of 1904, only six years after the city became incorporated. The company which presented it is not known, but the performance occurred in the Epperson Opera House located at 108 South Main. It was an upstairs all-purpose room with a stage and movable seating, used alternately for civic meetings, parties and theatrical events. Manager Epperson Opera House at 108 S. Main, about 1904. (Beryl D. Ford collection) 1 1 Bob Epperson expressed pride in his theater facility which even included a trap door in the stage, probably a most useful feature in a performance of Faust whereby the audience could “view the fires of Hell.” Slightly over a year later, in February of 1906 and still almost two years before Oklahoma statehood, the Grand Opera House opened on east Second Street with the presentation of a comic opera, The Grand Opera House at 115 E. 2nd Street, in 1906. (Beryl D Chaperons. Its location was very near Ford collection that of the present Performing Arts Center. During its relatively short existence, before being destroyed by fire in 1920, the Grand would boast of performances by some great names in opera and stage. On April 27, 1908, the Boston Ideal Opera Company put on Fra Diavolo. This was followed by International Grand Opera’s production of La Traviata on November2, 1909. Convention Hall, later to be known as Tulsa Municipal Theater, opened in 1914 on the corner of Brady and Boulder, and most subsequent opera presentations by touring companies were given there. Many all-time operatic greats appeared at Convention Hall during the next fifteen years. The Ellis Grand Opera performed Carmen (with Mary Garden) and Ii Trovatore on successive nights in October, 1916. The following year, Chicago Grand Opera presented Thais (again with Mary Garden) and La Traviata (with Frieda Hempel). Madame Butterfly with Temaki Miura in the title role was given in 1923. Noted basso Feodor Chaliapin appeared as Mephistophele in 1924 with The Chicago Civic Opera, and Mary Garden made a third Tulsa appearance the following night in Cleopatra. Other performances by Chicago Civic at Convention Hall included Aida (with Rosa Raisa) in March of 1927, and another La Traviata. These are only a few examples of operas presented during this period in the 1920s when opera was thriving in Tulsa and when, according to Gideon, “Tito Schipa became the favorite tenor of opera-goers.” Even the great Enrico Caruso once sang in Convention Hall, although it was a recital appearance rather than an opera performance. After the demise of the Grand Opera House in 1920, the Akdar Theater (later to become the Cimarron Ballroom) became prominent as a location for theatrical presentations. Its facilities made it a desirable place to perform operas, but it suffered severely from inadequate seating capacity. The Chicago Civic Opera agreed to perform there in 1925. Unfortunately, the opera they chose to present was Boris Godunov, a seemingly inappropriate choice for a small theater. The performance was a huge financial flop and was not particularly well received. Three years later, an important opera presentation at the Akdar met with more success. On January 30, 1928 a Tulsa audience was treated to a performance of a new American opera, The King’s Henchman. This work resulted from a collaboration by famous composer/critic Deems Taylor, and the 12 equally famous poet Edna St. Vincent Millay They were originally commissioned by the Metropolitan Opera to do the work, primarily as an attempt by the Met to counteract growing charges that no American was capable of writing a successful operatic work and that the English language was unsuitable for operatic singing. The King’s Henchman had premiered at the Met in early 1927, receiving high critical acclaim. For the 1927-1928 opera season, the Met and Royal Opera Company of London joined forces to arrange a transcontinental tour of the production, with performances scheduled in almost every major city across the United States. The tour was widely ballyhooed as “the first opportunity for American audiences to hear an American opera sung in their own language.” Several top-flight Metropolitan stars of that era, including Marie Sandelius, Rafaelo Diaz, and Richard Hale, were chosen to make the tour.