Omaha daily bee., 1910-03-13
At the Theaters

'The Golden Butterfly" at the
Brandeis.
Grace Van Studdiford and company in
The Golden Butterfly" a light opera In
book by Harry b. smith; staged by A. M;
HOlbrOOk; orchestra under direction OF
Anton Heindl. The principals:
Bertha, daughter of Petoffy .............
..LenoTa Noyaslo
Count Androssy, colone; Of the Hun
garian Hussars stationed at Buda-
Petoffy' a rich brewer Of Bada- Pesth
Baron Won Affenkoff. director Of the
Buda-Pesth opera. Harry MacDonough
Franz, a music student Of the Latin
Wanda, a gypsy girl. ....... Florence Doves
Hanska, stage manager of the Buda-
Pesth opera house 49, Thomas Van
Tina Korbay, primadonna of Buda-
Pesth Opera company Charlotte Leslay
Htdegalde .Lenora NoVasio
Freda Louise Garrett
Prince ssrgius orloffsky' a Russian
Lan hoVie a wine grower. 49,. .c 5taapts F PUuroeii
lima Walden Of the Buda-Pesth Opera
company chorus. Grace Van Studditord
Schmucke. ......... BehOT
Grace Van Staddiford, at the head of one
OF the finest singing organizations ever
heard in Omaha, delighted a large audi
AAA@N ~ NhN Ae9N AhoAN ~ 49, -
hibition Of vocal magnificence rarely heard
outside grand opera. Very few light operas
are furnished with a score as ambitious as
that Mr.. de Koven has provided for this
work and even fewer are entrusted to sing
ers who are equipped to present them so
we'll as are Miss Van Studdiford and the
splendid array Of singers who surround
her.
Miss Van Studdiford was In uncommonly
fine voice last night, and the results she
achieved surpassed anything she has before
accomplished in Omaha. She sang with alb
solute precision and such ease that her
tones were all the more marvellous. Her
opulent notes were full and clear. and sus-
tanned with no apparent effort, and Of
exquisite sweetness. Her first song, Don't
Forget Me" has a rather peculiar arrange
n cnt, but serves to show off the voice in
a most desirable way, calling for perfect
control on the part of the singer and alb
solute certainty in tone production and
placing. and the applause that followed
the song showed most plainly the triumph
she had achieved. She has two other songs
in the first act that are delightful, the
one that closes the act being especially eff
%fective, owing to its strangely sweet music.
1t is almost a 'Miserere," and comes as
a distinct novelty In the light opera way.
Instead of the curtain going down on a
stage, filled with people, concluding a
chorus at fortissimo, only the one voice is
heard, all the others being gone, and that
one in a pathetic lament for a lost love. 1t
won applause, but deserved 1t. In the sec
ond act Miss Van Studdiford has other
songs, and last night she sang them so
well that she was congratulated even by
members of the company.
d.. - ,Nn- l. -
ability in the company. Miss Leslay is also
possessor of a voice Of valuable strength
and sweetness of tone, which is used with
taste and Judgment, she leading the chorus
in one Of the livellest numbers of the bill,
and singing a delightful duet with Mr..
Haydn. Miss Florence Bows, the contralto,
suffered a little from the effects Of a cold.
but sang beautifully her share Of the quar-
tet in the last act. Miss Hazel Kirke, who
leads this number, has been heard in
Omaha before; she, too, possesses a So
prano voice that gives her claim to more
than ordinary distinction, and uses It with
positive skill and charming results. Mr..
Haydn's tenor is Of excellent timbre. but
last night ne was unequal to the task of
competing with the augmented orchestra.
which seemed to have a little the better of
him when it came to volume. The ensemble
numbers were magniflcently rendered; it
will be a long time before the Brandels
hears anything better than the closing Of
the second act, II it ever does.
Messrs. Marlborough. Van and Benor
work hard to get the comedy out Of the
lines and situations furnished them, and
succeed fairly well; but many less preten-
tious productions have been better fitted
with a libretto. The chorus is numerous
and good to gaze at, as well as bei-g a com
fort to listen to, and contains a couple OF
kids who are as full of life and mischief
as 1t Is possible for a pair OF 16-year-olds
to be. Scenery and costumes are OF the
quality that make up attractive pictures OF
harmonious coloring, and the stage group
ings have been worked out to the end that
the eye is always pleased as we'll as the
ear. II Harry b. Smith had worked as
hard as the others, The Golden Butterfly
would be a wonder. AS it is, it is a source
Of much pleasure.
PlRttsmOuth Girls Win,