Marguerite Bériza

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Marguerite Bériza

Marguerite Bériza (1879–1970[1]) was a French opera singer who had an active international career during the first half of the 20th century. She began her career as a mezzo-soprano at the Opéra-Comique in 1900; ultimately transitioning into the leading soprano repertoire at that theatre in 1912. She performed extensively in the United States from 1914 to 1917 and was also heard as a guest artist at theatres in the French provinces, Monaco, Portugal, and Switzerland during her career. In 1924 she founded her own opera company in Paris with whom she actively performed up until 1930.

During her early career, Bériza was married to the French tenor Lucien Muratore. In 1906–1907, they appeared on several Edison cylinder recordings together where she was billed under the name Magli Muratore. She was also billed under that name on a 1910 Pathé Records recording which also included performances by Albert Vaguet and Henri Albers. She divorced Muratore in 1913 so he could marry the soprano Lina Cavalieri. On the stage she performed mainly under the name Marguerite Bériza, sometimes shortening it to Magli Bériza. However, she was occasionally billed under the surname Dériza and in her latter career as Mme Bériza-Greven, probably after a second marriage.[2]

Education and career as a mezzo-soprano

Marguerite Aimée Barousse known as Bériza, born on February 12, 1879, in

Madame Butterfly; later taking over the part of Suzuki in successive performances. In 1910, she portrayed the role of Pénélope in the world premiere of Claude Terrasse's Le mariage de Télémaque.[4]

Some of the roles that Bériza sang during her early years at the Opéra-Comique were the 2nd Priestess in both

The Ring Cycle.[4] She was also heard there as Stéphano in Roméo et Juliette.[2]

Career as a soprano

In 1912, Bériza began performing leading soprano roles at the Opéra-Comique. There she had major success in roles like Musetta in Puccini's La bohème, Santuzza in Pietro Mascagni's Cavalleria rusticana, Violetta in Giuseppe Verdi's La traviata, and the title roles in Ambroise Thomas's Mignon and Puccini's Tosca. She also continued to perform roles traditionally sung by mezzo-sopranos like Anita in Jules Massenet's La Navarraise and Mallika in Léo Delibes's Lakmé.[2] She sang leading roles as a guest artist at the Grand Théâtre de Genève, the Opéra de Marseille, the Opéra de Nice, and the Opéra National de Lyon.[2]

While still performing occasionally at the Opéra-Comique, Bériza gave numerous performances in the United States during the second decade of the 20th century. In late 1913 she came to the United States for the first time to sing with the Boston Opera Company; making her debut with the company in January 1914 as Musetta to the Mimi of Maggie Teyte.[5] She appeared in several more roles with the company that year, including Antonia in The Tales of Hoffmann, Marguerite in Gounod's Faust and the title roles in Gustave Charpentier's Louise and Henry Février's Monna Vanna (replacing Mary Garden in the role).[6]

Bériza sang Monna Vanna for her debut with the

St. Louis, Missouri, in the world premiere of Homer Moore's Louis XIV.[4]

In 1923, Bériza joined the roster of the Théâtre Fiametta in Paris where she performed in several contemporary stage works.[2] In 1924 she starred in the world premiere of Lord Berners's Le Carrosse du Saint Sacrement at the Théâtre des Champs-Élysées.[13] She was also heard at that theater in April of that year as Isabelle in the world premiere of Henri Sauguet's Le plumet du colonel.[4]

In 1924, Bériza founded the Theatre Bériza in Paris which housed a resident opera company, ballet company, and a troupe of actors for a variety of performing arts productions; often with an

Théâtre Fémina in Paris on 28 January 1927.[2] In 1928 her company made the unusual but successful choice of presenting two secular cantatas of Johann Sebastian Bach in staged productions: The Peasant Cantata and The Coffee Cantata.[16] One of her last stage appearances was as Polly Peachum in Kurt Weill's The Threepenny Opera in 1930.[4]

References

  1. Bibliothèque Nationale de France
    .
  2. ^
    Operissimo concertissimo
    .
  3. ^ Larousse de la musique, Paris : Larousse, 1957, vol. 1, p. 96.
  4. ^ a b c d e Casaglia, Gherardo (2005). "Marguerite Bériza". L'Almanacco di Gherardo Casaglia (in Italian).
  5. ^ "Miss Teyte An Adorable Mimi", The Boston Globe, 4 January 1914, pg. 16
  6. ^ "Mme Beriza Succeeds Mary Garden As Monna Vanna With Success". The Boston Globe. March 1, 1914. p. 8.
  7. ISBN 9780819566744
    . More interesting was the company of singers and dancers organized by Marguerite Beriza, a one-time prima donna of the Chicago and Boston operas, who sponsored some of the more interesting experiments in lyric theater of the ...
  8. ^ "'Carmen' Is Sung at Ravinia Park.", Chicago Tribune, 25 July 1916, page 14
  9. ^ "Known High Points In The Career Of Orville Harrold". musicweb-international.com. Retrieved 8 October 2010.
  10. ^ "Final Bills of Ravinia's Season", Chicago Tribune, 2 September 1917, page C2
  11. ^ "Society Turns Out for Gala Closing of Opera at Ravinia", Chicago Tribune, 4 September 1928, pg. 37
  12. ^ "Creatore Opera Company". The New York Times. October 14, 1917.
  13. ^ "Lord Berners's Opera". The New York Times. 25 May 1924.
  14. ISBN 9788833139371
    .
  15. ^ "Stravinsky at the Berlin Staatsoper -- Opera in London and Paris". The New York Times. 28 June 1925.
  16. ^ "Paris Applauds Bach In Lighter Vein". The New York Times. 30 December 1928.

External links

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