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Sir Thomas Beecham (1879-1961),
the wealthy heir to the Beecham Pill manufacturer, established his Beecham Opera
Company in 1915 with a short season at the Shaftesbury Theater in London. His
company initially presented various English works such as Stanford's The
Critic and Ethel Smyth's The Boatswain's Mate. It rapidly grew into a
grand opera organization. However, Beecham's conflicting arrangements with his
conducting duties at Covent Garden forced the company into liquidation by 1920.
Beecham's company eventually evolved into the British National Opera Company.
These postcards were published by the Rotary Photographic Company. There were at
least 15 sets produced including The Marriage of Figaro (3 sets), Tristan and
Isolde, Madame Butterfly, Othello, La Boheme, Ivan the Terrible, Aida, I
Pagliacci, Cavalleria Rusticana, Louise, Boris Godounov, Faust, and
Samson and Delilah. Each set came in a postcard envelope and cost one
shilling. |
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(1) Sir
Thomas Beecham (St Helens, Lancs.: 29 Apr 1879 - London: 8 Mar 1961).
Sir Thomas
Beecham, English musical conductor and opera impresario, sprang a sensation here
today by announcing that he intended to shake the dust of England from his shoes
forever and go to live in the United States. Sir Thomas, who lost a fortune
trying to make grand opera pay in his native land, made bitter comments on
England and the English people when he disclosed his intention of making the New
World his home. "England is finished, not only musically but every other way,"
he told newspaper representatives. "The only thing for everybody to do is to
give up and go to America. I am off very soon. I am going as a guest and will
conduct the Philadelphia orchestra.... He fired this parting shot at England:
"There is no hope for this country in any way. We are an imperial race like the
Romans and work is distasteful to us. I suggest that we put our entire
industrial population on doles, import Chinese and Japanese workmen and pay them
the difference between the dole and what we would pay ourselves if we chose to
work, and then the country would be run without our having to soil our imperial
hands." NY Times: 5 Nov
1926.
(2) Sir Thomas
Beecham.
(3) Sir Thomas Beecham.
(4) The Beecham opera postcards
were sold in sets of six cards. They cards were sold in an envelope such as seen
here.
The sets I know of were as
follows (Note: The operas were performed in English) :
-
The Marriage of Figaro (set 1)
(featuring Desire Ellinger, Frederick Austin, Miriam Licette, Powell Edwards)
-
The Marriage of Figaro (set 2)
(featuring Alfred Heather, Miriam Licette, Clytie Hine, Frederick Austin,
Frederick Ranalow)
-
The Marriage of Figaro (set 3)
(featuring Bessie Tyas, Frederick Austin, Miriam Licette, Frederick Ranalow,
Miss Owen Trevitt)
-
Tristan and Isolde (featuring
Rosina Buckmann, Frank Mullings)
-
Madame Butterfly (featuring
Edith Clegg)
-
Othello (featuring Miriam
Licette)
-
La Bohème (featuring Powell
Edwards, Olive Townend, Jeanne Brola, Frederick Austin, Webster Millar)
-
Ivan the Terrible
-
Aida (featuring Rosina Buckmann,
Edna Thornton, Norman Allin, Powell Edwards, Frank Mullings)
-
I Pagliacci (featuring Robert
Parker, Olive Townend)
-
Cavalleria Rusticana (featuring
Rosina Buckmann, Maurice D'Oisly)
-
Boris Godounov (featuring
Robert Radford, Powell Edwards)
-
Louise (featuring
Edith Clegg,
Miriam Licette, Frederick Ranalow, Maurice D'Oisly)
-
Faust (featuring Miriam Licette)
-
Samson and Delilah (featuring
Edna Thornton, Norman Allin)
-
Sir Thomas Beecham (at least 3
postcards of the impresario and conductor)
(5) All of the Beecham opera
postcards have a similar back.
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1
Reid, Charles. 1962. Thomas Beecham. An Independent Biography. New York:
E. P. Dutton & Co. |
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(6) Frank Mullings as Radames
(Aida): English tenor (Walsall: 10 Mar 1891 - Manchester: 19 May 1953). He
made his debut in Coventry (1907) as Faust. He performed with the T.B.O.C.
from 1916 to 1921. He was also associated with the B.N.O.C. from 1922 to 1926.
He created the role of Hadyar in Nail (by De Lara) and Apollo in
Alkestis (by Boughton). Otello was his greatest role, although he also
excelled as Tristan.
(7) Norman Allin as Ramphis
(Aida). (Ashton-under-Lyne: 19 Nov 1884 - London: 27 Oct 1973). English
bass. His marriage to the mezzo-soprano Edith Clegg prompted him to
concentrate on his singing. Allin made his debut with the Thomas Beecham Opera
Company as the Aged Hebrew in Samon and Delilah (postcard number 15 on
this page). Later, he became the director of the British National Opera
Company (1922-29).
(8) Rosina Buckmann (Aida)
and Powell Edwards (Amonarsro).
(9) Rosina Buckmann.
New Zealand soprano (Blenheim, NZ: c1880 - London: 30 Dec 1948). She made her
debut in Welling (1906) in A Moorish Maid (by Hill). She sang with the
Melba Grand Opera Company in Australia (1909, 1911). She appeared at Covent
Garden, and with the Beecham Company from 1915 to 1920. She excelled as Aida
(seen here), Butterfly, and Isolde. She was married to the tenor Maurice
d'Oisly.
(10) Edna Thornton as Amneris
(Aida). English contralto (Bradford: 1875 - Worthing: 15 Jul 1964). She
sang with Convent Garden (1905-1910, 1919-1923). She was especially admired for
her Wagner roles, personally chosen by Richter as Waltraute and Erda in English
Ring (1908-1909). She sang in the world premiere of The Perfect Fool
(Holst, 1923).
(11) Walter Hyde and Norman Allin
as Samson and the Aged Hebrew.
(12) Walter Hyde as Samson.
English tenor (Birmingham: 6 Feb 1875 - London: 11 Nov 1951). Studied with
Garcia, and appeared in operas as a student, and then in light musicals. He
sang Siegmund in the English Ring at Covent Garden, and appeared there
regularly from 1908 to 1923. After singing with the Beecham Company he became
the director of the British National Opera Company.
(13) Edna Thornton and
Walter
Hyde as Delilah and Samson.
(14) Edna Thornton as Delilah.
(15) Norman Allin as
the Aged Hebrew (his opera debut role) in Samson and Delilah.
(16) Frederic Austin as Iago
(Othello). English baritone (London: 30 Mar 1872 - London: 10 Apr
1952).
London:
Frederic Austin, operatic singer and composer who for many years was closely
connected with the Royal Philharmonic Society, died here today at the age of
80. After singing at festivals and concerts, Mr. Austin took up operatic work
and became the principal baritone for the former Beecham Opera Company. Writer
of many orchestral works, pianoforte pieces and songs, he conducted in 1940
the Glyndebourne Festival's revival of The Beggar's Opera to his
musical version. He also was the former president of the British Incorporated
Society of Musicians. Obituary, NY Times : 11 Apr 1952.
(17) Frank Mullings as
Othello, his most memorable role.
(18) English soprano Miriam
Licette (1892-1969) as Desdemona (Othello). She was a pupil of
Marchesi and de Reszke. Licette made her debut (1911) in Rome (Madama
Butterfly). She sang with Beecham's troupe (1916-20) and with the British
National Opera Company (1922-28) that evolved from it. She also sang many
important roles with the Royal Opera at Covent Garden (1919-29).
(19) Frank Mullings as
Tristan. During the 1915-16 season at Shaftesbury, Mullings was getting sixty
guineas for a single performance as Tristan. By comparison, the yearly salary
for a conductor with the company was 750 pounds.
(20) Rosina Buckmann and
Frank Mullings as Isolde and Tristan.
[During World War I]
"During a Tristan und Isolde, with Mullings,
Rosina Buckman (name parts) and Edna Thornton (Brangaene) on the stage, James
Elliott, the assistant manager, suddenly appeared among them in dress clothes.
Advancing to the footlights with upraised hand, he said to the audience, 'We
have just been informed that enemy aeroplanes have crossed the coast and that
an air raid is about to take place. I would like to tell you that the walls of
this theatre are seven feet thick, but I don't think it's too good for you in
the upper and grand circles. I suggest you all come down into the stalls.'"1
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