Evening star., 1927-12-04
NJ i S &c
BY HELEN FETTER.

, the Jewess and Amelia in The
Masked Ball." this season.
Also here's hoping that none OF
the many artists to appear with the
local company this week get the
toothache."
WHILE grand opera in its native
w tongue is hourishing through
out the week under Mr.. Albion S
auspices, with the only translation
that of "Hansel and Gretel, the
fairy tale opera Saturday matinee,
which will be sung in English, as it
is expected that many children will
attend this performance, grand opera
in special translations and novel set
tings will parade the boards for three
performances next week, when the
American Opera Co. will be in
Wa shington. This group is said to
be an all-American organization as
to artists, directors, hackers, etc.
* X X
IN the meantime, another group OF
L American singers. mostly young,
with stunning, peppy chorus that
is the talk of the town, is putting
on stock" light opera excellently
at the President, under the direction
of T. Arthur Smith. It's Gilbert and
Sullivan's most famous-"The Mika-
do"-that they put on this week.
There's a new leading lady in the
company. too--Edith Thayer, who
will be remembered as the very
charming prima donna of Blossom
Time" in the company when she
was associated with William DAN
forth, who is in a prominent role in
The Circus Princess" here last
week on tour.
Little Miss Thayer was born in
Cochituatc, Mass, not much more
than score of years ago. She hrst
studied to be a pianist, and then, dis
covering she had a clear, soprano
voice, she went abroad to study with
Jean de Reszke. 1t was Hammer
stein who brought her back home to
sing the lead in "Firefy," "Katinka"
and other operas, with three seasons
later in Blossom Time and then
other productions.
Miss Thayer may be small, but
she was laughing the other day at
rehearsal at the remark that Lee
DAILY, leading comedian of the group,
made about her property trunk"
He suggested that she have the
property man put windows in the
trunk and make it a bungalow, it
was such a big trunk.
IN the City of Brotherly Love, the
" Philadelphia Civic Opera Co. pro-
vided something of national sensa-
tion Thursday night when they put
on the premiere performances in this
country of two German operas-a
very old one by Gluck, entitled "The
May Queen" and much more mod
ern opera by the living composer,
Richard Straus, "Feuersnot," writ
ten at the zenith of the composer S
productive period, following the COM
| posing of the famous tone poems,
Death and TRANSPORTATION" "Till
Eulenspiegel," Don Juan" and
"Heldenleben." Many young Ameri-
cans were given opportunities, in
cluding Sigurd Nilssen, we'll known
III Wv dS iiliktO having HhduC iliS up
cratic debut with the local company
in Romeo and Juliet" two years ago,
and sung in several operas and many
private recitals here since.
* X \
COME of the high lights of the
- Composers Club program We'd
nesday night will include Two Res
taurant Pieces" by Mary Howe, de-
scriptive modernistic works for vio-
lin and piano; arrangement of two
Japanese melodies, "a Pilgrimage to
the Shrine" and Spear Dance" by
LaSalle Spier. another modernist
settings by Ervine Stenson of two
salt Water Ballads" by John Mase-
field; vocal, piano and violin works
by Edwin Potter. Jerome Williams,
Karl Holer and Henri Smidt- Gregor,
and one choral work, "The Twenty
third Psalm" as set by R. Deane
Shure.