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Lina Abarbanell

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Lina Abarbanell
New York Public LibraryDigital Gallery
Born(1879-01-03)January 3, 1879
Berlin,Germany
DiedJanuary 6, 1963(1963-01-06)(aged 84)
Montefiore HospitalThe Bronx,New York, US
Occupation(s)Sopranosinger in grand and light opera and musical comedy.

Lina Abarbanell(January 3, 1879[1]– January 6, 1963[2]) was an American soprano who performed in grand and light opera andmusical comedy.She made her debut at fourteen as Adele in the operettaDIE FLEDERMAUS,at the Royal Opera House in Berlin. She was first introduced to American theatergoers in 1905 as thesoubrettein theJosef StraussoperettaFrühlingsluft(Spring Air). Abarbanell made opera history later that year as Hänsel inThe Met's debut production ofEngelbert Humperdinck'sHänsel und Gretel.Abarbanell spent the following near thirty years performing on Broadway and at venues across America. After her husband's death in 1934, Abarbanell left the stage, but remained active over virtually the remainder of her life as aBroadwaycasting director,producer, and stage director.

Early life and career

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Lina Abarbanell was born inBerlin,underImperial Germany,to Paul and Marie Abarbanell. Her father, a descendant of a prominentSephardic Jewishfamily ofBulgariandescent, was a well-known Berlin musical director.[3][4]

She trained for the stage under her father and at schools in Berlin and Vienna. Abarbanell made her first informal appearances on stage at the age of six or seven. At theDeutsches Theater,Berlin she was among the cast that supportedJosef Kainzin an 1896 revival ofLupaci Vagabundus, or the Good-For-Nothing Clover Leaf,a farce byJohann Nestroy.[5]After some additional musical training, the following year she joined the Grand Opera,Poznań(then part of theGerman Empire) performing inLes Huguenots,Hänsel und Gretel,The Geisha,and as Hadvig Ekdal inIbsen'sThe Wild Duck.Later Abarbanell appeared inDie Fledermausat the Royal Opera House, Berlin, and commenced on a tour of opera houses in Germany, Belgium, Denmark, Austria and the Netherlands.[4]

American career

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Lina Abarbanell

In 1905,Heinrich Conried,manager of theIrving Place Theatreand the Metropolitan Opera House, brought Abarbanell to New York. Her American debut came that October at Irving Place inFrühlingsluft(Spring Breezes) followed a month later playing Lt. Von Vogel inJung Heidelberg(Young Heidelberg), a comic opera with music fromCarl Millöckerand book by Leopold Krenn andKarl Lindau.[6]Her debut at the Metropolitan Opera House as Hänsel toBella Alten's Gretel came on November 25, 1905.[7]After honing her language skills Abarbarbanell made her English-speaking debut at theGarden Theatreon Christmas Day, 1906, as Lisa in the musical comedyThe Student King.[8]

In March 1907 she began a tour inThe White Chrysanthemum,[9]but left by the end of the month following a dust-up over a dressing room issue with co-starEdna Wallace Hopper.[10][11]That October she played the lead character Sonia inFranz Lehár'sThe Merry Widowat the Colonial Theatre, Chicago.The Merry Widow,which ran simultaneously at Chicago and New York, was a huge success, netting an estimated one million dollars over its first year. The New York production was performed initially at theNew Amsterdam Theatreand starredEthel Jacksonuntil she fell ill in March 1908 and was replaced by Abarbanell.[12][13]After a successful national tour inThe Merry Widow,Abarbanell replaced Elgie Bowen as Nellie Vaughan in the romantic musicalThe Love Cureat the New Amsterdam in October 1909.[14][15]At the same venue the following August, Abarbanell played the title role in the musical comedyMadame Sherry,which had a run of 231 performances[16]and was later taken on tour.[17]

Abarbanell remained active on Broadway and in road productions for over two decades. Her most popular endeavor during this time was probably as Mademoiselle Martinet inThe Grand Duke,a comedy bySacha Guitrythat was produced byDavid Belascoat theLyceum Theatre.The Grand Dukehad a respectable run between November 1921 and March 1922 and a later road tour.[18][19]Abarbanell last appeared on the Broadway stage at the end of January 1934 in the very short-lived playTheodora, the Quean.[20]

Eduard Goldbeck

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Abarbanell married the German political writer Eduard Goldbeck (April 21, 1866 – April 25, 1934) in 1900. Goldbeck was born in Berlin where he attended university before serving as an officer for seven years with the Prussian Army. In 1911 he permanently relocated to the United States where for a number of years he wrote commentaries on current events and literature for theChicago Tribune.Books Goldbeck authored includeKrieg in Sicht!(1906)[21]Deutschlands Zukunft die Nationaldemokratie!(1907)[22]Politische Plaudereien(1908),[23]andBriefe an den Deutschen Kronprinzen(1908)[24]Goldbeck died ofcirrhosis of the liverin 1934 at their residence in the Hotel Somerset on West Forty-Seventh Street, New York.[25][26]The couple's only child was the writerEva Goldbeck(1901–1936), who married composerMarc Blitzsteinin 1933.[27]

Later career

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In 1931 a large barn inWestport, Connecticutwas transformed into theWestport County Playhouse.Three years laterThe Chimes of Normandy,Arthur Guiterman's adaptation of theRobert Planquetteoperetta, opened their 1934 summer season withHelen FordandGeorge Meaderin the lead roles,Lawrence Langnerstage director, Gene Martell choreographer, and Lina Abarbanell chorus director.[28]

Abarbanell returned to Broadway in 1938 as an assistant toDwight Deere Wimanon the hit musical comedyI Married an Angel.[29]She would continue on working in some capacity on Broadway productions for nearly the remainder of her life. Abarbanell's only known film credit was as a casting consultant on the 1954 musicalCarmen Jones.[4][30]

Death

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Abarbanell died after a heart attack on January 6, 1963, atMontefiore Hospital,inthe Bronx,New York. [2]

References

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  1. ^Some sources say her birth year was 1880.
  2. ^ab"Lina Abaranell (sic) Dead".The New York Times.January 8, 1963. p. 8.RetrievedApril 19,2016.
  3. ^Spengler, Otto,Das deutsche Element der Stadt New York1913, p. 54. Retrieved June 1, 2013.
  4. ^abcHyman, Paula & Moore, Debora Dash,Jewish Women in America1998 (page 3).Retrieved May 31, 2013.
  5. ^The Stage in the Kaiser's Realm.The New York Dramatic MirrorMay 23, 1896, p. 10. Retrieved June 3, 2013.
  6. ^Before the Footlights.The New York Daily NewsNovember 5, 1905, p. 3, col. 2. Retrieved June 1, 2013.
  7. ^Isaacs, Lewis Montefiore – Rahlson, Kurt Julian –Hänsel and Gretel: A Guide to Engelbert Humperdinck's Opera1913, p. 13. Retrieved May 31, 2013.
  8. ^The Student King,Internet Broadway Database. Retrieved June 2, 2013.
  9. ^The White Chrysanthemum,Stagebeauty.netRetrieved June 2, 2013.
  10. ^Clash of Rival Stars.The New York Times,March 23, 1907, p. 9
  11. ^The Theatre.Evening Star(Washington D.C.), March 31, 1907, p. 10. Retrieved June 2, 2013.
  12. ^The Merry Widow.The New York TimesDecember 22, 1907. Retrieved June 3, 2013.
  13. ^New Amsterdam Theatre.New York TribuneMarch 29, 1908, p. 2. Retrieved June 3, 2013.
  14. ^New Amsterdam.New York TribuneOctober 10, 1909, p. 3. Retrieved June 3, 2013.
  15. ^The Love Cure,Internet Broadway DatabaseRetrieved June 3, 2013.
  16. ^Madame SherryInternet Broadway DatabaseRetrieved June 3, 2013.
  17. ^National (advertisement).The Washington TimesMarch 6, 1912, p. 11, col. 7. Retrieved June 3, 2013.
  18. ^The Grand Duke,Internet Broadway Database.Retrieved June 4, 2013.
  19. ^National (advertisement)The Grand Duke.The Washington Herald.April 2, 1922, p. 3. Retrieved June 4, 2013.
  20. ^Theodora, the Quean,Playbill VaultRetrieved June 5, 2013.
  21. ^War in Sight
  22. ^Germany's Future, the National Democracy!
  23. ^Political Chatter
  24. ^Letters to the German Crown Prince
  25. ^Edward Goldbeck Noted Writer Dies.The New York Times,April 27, 1934, p. 21.
  26. ^Eduard Goldbeck, Google BooksRetrieved June 5, 2013.
  27. ^Pollack, Howard –Marc Blitzstein His Life, His Work, His Worldpp. 62–75, 97–115. Retrieved June 5, 2013.
  28. ^Westport Theatre Opens to Operetta.The New York Times,June 29, 1934, p. 16
  29. ^I Married an AngelInternet Broadway DatabaseRetrieved June 5, 2013.
  30. ^Lina Abarbanell – Internet Movie DatabaseRetrieved June 5, 2013.
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