The Indianapolis times. [volume] (Indianapolis [Ind.]) 1922-1965, 1926-08-28
Open Air Opera in St. Louis Closes
Biggest Season in Its History
TT. LOUIS civically produced
municipal opera with the
i presentation of Victor Her
= ttRnhns In Tnulnndu last Sun

IN municipal opera with the
IL presentation of Victor Her
bert's BABES in Toyland" last sun
day night ended it's eighth season,
during which all records for attend
ance and receipts We're broken, in
spite Of cold and threatening wealth
Ell throughout the summer that jeop-
ardizes the success Of open-air light
! opera.
For the second time in its history
| the Municipal Theater Association
| presented a season of twelve weeks,
with eighty-one performances being
given in all, three being abandoned
| because OF rain. The attendance on
these elghty-one nights reached a
total of $50, $50 persons, as against
! 477,229, who attended the twelve
weeks season in 1925. while the re-
ceipts aggregated $34S,996 com
pared to $31i,7S1.75 in 1925. The
attendance figures include persons
who every night filled the 1000 seats
| for which no admission is charged.
The production Of Verdis I'll
| Trovatore," for which the Municipal
| Theater Association engaged a
special cast Of artists that included
/ Frances Peralta. Marion Telva and
James Wolfe of the Metropolitan
/ Opera Company, attracted the larg-
est attendance Of the year, with
53,135 persons, while the receipts
reached the high mark of $35. SPOTS.
The III Trovatore" record would
have been seriously threatened in
popularity by Babes in Toyland"
had not rain cut short one of the
performances of the final work in
| 1925, for at each Of the final four
performances 1900 persons viewed
the extravaganza, fully 5000 were
turned away because there was
neither standing room nor seats left.
Every one Of the 1913 seats had been
sold each night in advance and all
the 1900 free seats were occupied
nightly long before the extravaganza.
The financial success Of the 1926
season was assured, officials of the
association state, by the I'M
precedented receipts taken in, and
it marks the seventh successive
season that st. Louis municipal
opera has been self-supporting. The
first season was the only year that
the guarantors were called upon to
make up a deficit and they were re.
imbursed out of the profits Of the
next season.
The receipts and reserved seat at
tendance of each of the twelve
operas:
Eileen" s24,S24; 25,SS7. "The
Red Mill" s31 1865; 1880. 1.-THE
Chocolate Soldier" $S2 ,6SS.25; A.
S66. 1.-THE Spring Maid" $29,557.75;
SS,O17. 1.-The Pink Lady," S2,S4O;
39,191. I'll Trovatore," $35,620.75;
41,935. "Sweethearts." $SS.967. 49,
$40. "Iolanthe," $25,62O.75; 29,5OS.
Count of Luxembourg" $2I964, so;
81, 5S7. Woodland" $22, 9O9.25; 81
665. Fra Diavolo," S2O,S91; 24,S45.
Babes in Toyland," $31, 345.25;
4O,769.
With the Middle West public
stamping st. Louis civic opera so
emphatically with its approval, di-
rectors of municipal opera are now
laying plans for a bigger and better
opera in 1927. That st. Louis has
accepted the standard and quality of
the productions is attested by season
ticket subscribers who have already
renewed their orders for next year
70 tho evtapt of c76 mn
+ II Il
EV. w. A. Billy SUNDAY.
TX famous evangelist, has re-
turned to Winona Lake, In
diana, from his summer home at
Hood River, Ore, and will preach in
the big tabernacle named after him
Sunday morning, Aug. 20, at 1890
a. m. and is sure to have the usual
capacity crowd which gathers to
hear him every time he appears in
this commodious and excellent
auditorium.
Mr.. Sundays appearance at this
time is one of the events on the
closing day of the program presented
Aug. % to 20 by the School of Sa-
ClGu holNs IAOuCAACclNCl
president
The other event Of the day will
be the annual presentation of the
Messiah" at o'clock Sunday after
noon under the direction of Profess
sor Daniel Protheroe of Chicago, as
sisted by the festival chorus, the
massed choirs and prize winners in
the church choir contests, and the
support of a thirty-piece orchestra
under the leadership of Prof. Paul T.
Smith There is no charge for these
services on Sunday.
Other outstanding events on the
closing days of sacred music week
was the appearance of Marion Tai
ley, the 19year-old prima donna Of
the Metropolitan bureau last night;
the gospel song contest on Friday
afternoon. and the great church
choir contests on today.
For these contests on Saturday,
noted singers and choirs are coming