Evening star., 1926-05-23
By FLORENCE MACBETH.
As Told to Prosper Buranelli.

"HE thing that has happened
to me represents case OF
desire long felt and achieved
at last. Yes, l am singer.
l am just back from a long
concert tour. Seasons with the Chs
cago Opera Company have identified
me with the lyric stage. You VIII
ask wherein am concerned With the
big top, the circus, why l am so much
elated over an affair that is laid III
the famous old world where the man
with the whip and the top hat sends
the bareback riders around the ring,
where the trained tigers step ana
snarl, where the trapeZe performers
swing and drop bouncing in the big
net. where the clowns and elephants
make feasts for young eyes, where
the cry of Hey, rube," rallies the
canya suen to the fight There IS a
sufflcfent background for 1t all, and
one quite strange as an opera sing
er's story.
The circus is in my blood, and II
always has been. I was horn to the
scarlet and sawdust of the colossal
concoction of stupendous spectacles
and then I married into it. Both the
memories Of early childhood and the
later glamour of romance have fas-
taned on me the vivid, hurly-burly
mood Of the main show and the side
shows. My profession is opera. MY
life's effort has been directed toward
the trills and phrases l sing as Glida,
Lucia or Marguerite. Yet a singular
destiny has kept me in contact with
the circus.
NV father is an old friend and as
sociate of the Ripglings. He and
John Ringing were boys together,
and together they went adventuring
into the realm OF the circus. AS
Youths in a small town in Minnesota
they got UP show together. They
orga anized the other boys and put on
quite an ambitious Wild West affair.
TO them 1t was a thrilling success.
They made a little money out OF 1t.
That was a caprice of early youth.
one Of those that later bring great
results. 1t was beginning that LED
to the Ringing brothers domination
OF the circus world. My father
always remained a comrade and
friendly associate Of the Ringlings.
one who kept in intimate contact
with their affairs. In spirit he, too,
belonged to the circus, and he prob
at,lv would have followed 1t In pro-
fession had not a convenient oppor-
tunity to attain prosperity come to
him in the lumber business.
Imagine a girl who is raised in q
household where intimate affairs OF
the circus are talked of constantly,
where the famous magnates Of the
greatest show in the world" are in
innate visitors. When the circus Is
in town she is as familiar with things
back Of the scenes as another child
is with seat in the main tent. She
hobnobs with the animal trainers.
She is carried on the shoulder Of the
mighty Siberian giant. She watches
the clowns rehearse a new act.
When she learns to ride it Is on the
back of Bucephalus, 1.-The pony with
human intelligence" That was I.
And do you imagine I never had any
dreamy thought Of some day Joining
as an equal the company of the glo-
rjous ones Of whose friendship was
so proud? Not at all. The difficulty
was that could never decide whether
7 would rather be bareback rider.
galloping with grace and dash around
the ring, or one of those marvellous
ladies in tights and with a whip who
tame the lions and make the savage
jungle beasts march around like kit.
tens.
/ might have become a circus per-
former II it had not been for the cir.
cumstance that my people were finan.
cially quite we'll of. My talent as
bareback rider or lion tanner was
not taken very seriously by my par
ents. They did not even give it
thought. 1t was. of course, source
of much more satisfaction to them
that I had voice. Concert stage and
opera were goals to be regarded
highly. So; to vocal study went.