Variety (December 1954)

68 rONCERTS-OPERA Wednesday, December 15, 1954 ’ ‘Medium’ to Tour Next Fall as Concert Attraction; 2 B’way Leads Re-Signed Legit, Cartoon Film Bids For ‘Archy’ After N.Y. Bow Nix Concert Tour Deal comic Gian-Carlo Menotti’s opera. "The*- Medium.” which had a run of over 200 performances on Broadway in ’47-’48. is being revived for next season, to tour the concert circuit as a stage attraction. Music-drama will be offered by the Coppicus. Schang & Brown division of Co- lumbia Artists Mgt. for a 16-week trek to its longhair outlets next fall. Although "The Medium” had a short run a while back along the west coast and has been seen in summer stock, thus will mark the first time the apera has toured the U. S. Production will be staged for Columbia by Peter Lawrence. Da- vid Kanter and Charles Pratt, from the legit field. (Latter two are currently production stage- manager and stage-manager of “The Boy Friend.” respectively, and the trio recently presented the Hurtado de Cordoba Ballet on Broadway). Marie Powers and Leo Coleman, two of the three leads of the original Broadway produc- tion of "Medium,” are signed for the new concert presentation. Wolf-Ferrari’s short comic opera, ‘‘Secret of Suzanne,” will probably be used as curtain-raiser to "Me- dium.” Originally, Columbia had planned to use "archy and mehit abel,” new comic opera which bowed in N. Y. last week, as the opener, but latter work has been withdrawn as a longhair presenta- tion due to film and legit inquiries last w'eek following its successful bow. archy and mehitabel, opera by Joe Darion and George Kleinsinger, which premiered in N. Y. last week to sock notices, M __ _ , . immediately stirred up a flurry of A re R h°earsal er of the Eastman activ “y in several show biz fields ’ School Orchestra and chorus lit- The short jazz opus, based on the erally brought down the house here Don Marquis stories, had been Rehearsal Brings Down Eastman Theatre Roof last week. As the students were playing and singing on the stage of the plush 3,300-seat Eastman Theatre, four large plaster panels in the arched dome of the theatre’s dickered for by Columbia Artists Mgt. for some weeks as a curtain- raiser to "The Medium” production which the bureau is sending out ceiling crashed into the auditorium. nex t f a ii as a concert attraction, leaving gaping hole about 15 j^j us j c corp. of America, which ! No one was injured. Several re P s Dan° n an d Kleinsinger, students were seated in the audi- dropped Columbia negotiations torium but none near the 36 or- after getting inquiries from a car- chestra seats that were crushed or toon film company and a Broadway damaged. A subscription concert legit source, by Erich Leinsdorf and the Roches- According to David Hocker, at ter Philharmonic was scheduled for MCA, a lead Broadway actor ex- four hours after the fall. pressed interest in "archy”; has a The house will be closed for sev- production setup to handle the ven- eral weeks while the ceiling is re- ture, and wants to present it along placed and experts check strength with a new companion-piece which of entire ceiling. Plans are under- Darion and. Kleinsinger would be way to hold all future Eastman asked to write. If venture went concerts, artists recitals and special through and proved successful, the events in the Auditorium Theatre, legit producers would likely want local legit outlet. to tour a second company them- selves. This was the main reason for withholding "archy” from Co lumbia Artists wdio, after last week’s premiere, were ready to sign. MCA, according to Hocker, couldn’t afford to tie "archy” up for a 10 or 15-week concert tour next fall. , , archy” has been recorded by Skitch Henderson is stepping Columbia Records, with David prominently into the longhair con- Wayne and Carol Channing as the ducting field. The NBC batoneer, leads, and is skedded for February in his first professional season un- release. Daily News drama critic der the Columbia Artists Mgt. ban- j 0 hn Chapman apparently heard a ner. teed off by conducting the sneak recording, because some Oklahoma City Symphony in a weeks ago he devoted a w’hole col- straight classical program Sunday umn to "archy,” commenting that afternoon, Dec. 5. He’s to be guest some Broadway producers should maestro with the National Synt- i 00 k to its author-composer for a phony, in Washington, Jan. 8 , and legit show. Unsolicited column, said is pencilled in with the Minne- Hocker, plus preem of the opus, apolis Symphony for April 24. drummed up trade interest. Next season, Henderson will be listed as a regular conductor under the Columbia banner, in the Jud- Inside Stuff—Concerts Lily Pons last week completed a fall tour of 18 concert dates, over a 10 -week period, at an average fee of $3,250 to $3,500 an appearance. It was the vet soprano’s biggest autumn trek in many years. Usually she does 12 dates in the fall, and 12 more in the spring. Miss Pons will still do her 12 next spring, following her Met Opera engagements, which start in February. This will mark the singer's 24th year with the Met as a top singer. Unusual angles involved are that no femme opera singer has held sway that long at the Met in a top spot, or has been able after so long a career to do the kind of biz Miss Pons is grabbing currently on tour. Met Bowing Unusual Double-Bill In Splash of Inside Stuff, ‘Firsts’ Skitch Switch Into Longhair 15 New Works, 2G Each Ordered for 75th Anni Of Hub Symph Next Yr. Boston, Dec. 14. The Boston Symphony Orches- tra will celebrate its 75th anniver- sary next year (1955-56). In honor of the occasion, tha orchestra, and the Serge Koussevitzky Music Foundation of the Library of Con- . . gress have jointly commissioned 15 so "; ° N e, ll A: Judd division new works by contemporary com- Meantime (handled by M u s i c posers. Each commission will pay America , Henderson is j 2 ooo batoning five nights a week on tv Works for symphony orchestra * be ^j e y e ^ cn sbow ’ To- $ 3.25 top. of approximately 20-30 minutes in j and bas h,s 5 >wn PJWam. Dark this week house re 0 p e ns - Best ot All, on NBC Monday Monday (20) with Katharine Cor- Greco $7,500, Clevc. Cleveland, Dec. 14. Jose Greco’s dance troupe kicked up a thin $7,500 for the Hanna last week in eight performances at length will be written by six Eu- ropean composers, eight from the United States and one from South America, as follows: Benjamin Britten (Englandt, Henri Dutilleux (France), Gottfried von Einem (Austria), Jacques Ibert (France), Darius Milhaud (France), Goffre- do Petrassi (Italy); Samuel Barber, Leonard Bernstein, Aaron Cop- land. Howard Hanson, Bohuslav Martinu, Walter Piston, William Schuman, Roger Sessions, all U.S. and Heitor Villa-Lobos (Brazil). Each score will carry the inscrip- tions: "Commissioned in celebra- nights. Inell’s "Dark is Ligtit Enough.” N. Y. to See Tudor Opus In ’55 Can. Ballet Visit Ottawa, Dec. 14. National Ballet Co. of Canada’s 1955 tour will feature Anthony Tudor’s new ballet; "Offenbach in the Underworld” (or "Le Bar du Can-Can”); which he’s directing now in Toronto, bicycling between there and N. Y. Action occurs in a Montmartre bar in 19th-century P&ris. The NBCC will be the first Ca- nadian ballet company in over a dozen years to play New York, which is included in its ’55 trek. Artistic director is Celia Franca, formerly with the Sadler’s Wells Ballet. Dutch Orch Winds Tour to 300G B.O. Classical Disk Reviews Strauss: Wiener Blut (Angel). Johann Strauss Jr.’s final operetta, though not his best, is still a trip- ping, melodious collection of tune- ful arias, waltzes, etc. Here it gets grade-A treatment from a skilled group of Viennese opera stalwarts iion*. ^">—7 I headed by the redoubtable Elisa tion of the 75th Anmveisaijr of Schwarzkopf, who brings 1 the Boston Symphony Orchestra, graceful light and artistic ap Charles Munch, Music Director, and “Dedicated to the memory of Serge and Natalie Koussevitzky.” The original manuscript scores will be deposited ultimately in the proach to her Countess role. Otto Ackermann and the Philharmonia lend suave support.. Stravinsky: L’Histoire du Soldat & Les Noces (Vanguard*. "Soldat, Serge Koussevitzky Collection of | short modern opera with charming the Library of Congress. Dr. Kous- sevitzky was a longtime conductor of the BSO. dissonances, is very engaging "Noces," a stark, strongly rhythmic choreographic cantata, also in- trigues. Fine performances by a Viennese orch and choral ensem- ble under Mario Rossi. Bartok: Violin Concerto (RCA Victor*. Harsh, dissonant, at times forbidding, but always compelling, this difficult opus gets a vivid per- Angel Records has issued a sec- formance by Yehudi Menuhin, with ond album of songs bv the Obern-|the London Philharmonia in solid kirchen Children’s Choir, skilled ; assist under the late Wilhelm Furt- group of German youngsters who wangler. made a sock impression in their ; Strauss: Ein Heldenleben (Co Obernkirchen Kids Choir Scores Again in 2d Album U. S. concert debut this fall. Al- bum, tagged "Little White Hen I lumbia*. One of the top rung in Strauss tone-poems, despite its length, this lush, opulent work gets And Seven Other Songs, doesn t an e j e ctric presentation by the have as good a selection ot num- Philadelphians under Eugene Or- ders as the first platter, but is; mandy. The string section is par quite appealing nonetheless. There’s another catchy rhythmic tune in "Wenn Ueber Sonnen- wegen,” by the group’s co-founder. ticularly sumptuous-sounding. Bach: Magnificat in D (Vox*. One of Bach’s most grateful and gra- cious choral compositions, with The Concertgebouw Orchestra of Amsterdam, one of Europe’s top symphs, w'ound up its first U.S. tour early this month. In eight weeks of touring, traveling by bus, orch gave 45 concerts, for an esti- mated b.o. take of $300,000. Orch’s share was $206,800. Group played to solid houses everywhere, with the exception of Detroit. Symph was booked by the Jud- son, O’Neill & Judd division of Columbia Artists Mgt., with Lever- ett Wright, CAM’s eastern sales manager, credited with superin- tending the bookings, handling all tour arrangements, etc. Dutch in- terests subsidized the ocean round- trip fares, amounting to $50,000. Orch had some unusual costs in addition, however. It had to main tain a subscription series at home, hiring outside symphs while it was here on tour, so that the American trek, despite the imposing take, wound up in the red. Management, however, said this had been taken into account against the goodwill value of the U. S. tour. Loss was no more than expected. 4 The Metropolitan Opera is offer- ing an unusual novelty at its N. Y. headquarters tomorrow night (Thurs.) in a double-bill that also includes a variety of "firsts.” Bill will comprise a revival of Strauss’ short opera, "Salome,” and the world preem of a ballet, "Vit- torio.” The N. Y. Philharmonic’s mae- stro, Dimitri Mitropoulos, will make his opera and ballet conduct- ing bows in this country by baton- ing both performances, while the "Salome” will introduce a top Viennese soprano, Christel Goltz, to the Met. "Vittorio,” first new ballet at the Met in seven years, was devised and choreographed by the Met’s ballet director, Zachary Solov, who’ll also make one of his rare appearances by dancing v the title role. Music is by Verdi, with Esteban Frances doing the sets. Behind the opera offering are a couple of neat inside stories. "Sa- lome” is also in the repertory of the rival Gotham operatic group, the N. Y. City Opera Co. The Met arranged for exclusive rights to "Salome” from music publishers Boosey & Hawkes for 1954-55, thus preventing the City Center outfit from doing it this season. Further- more, the City Center had Miss Goltz tentatively pacted to make her U. S. debut with them, last season, in "Salome.” Primadonna canceled out when a better offer from the Met came along. The Met pulled a similar stunt in 1952-53, when it secured an ex- clusive on another Strauss opera, "Der Rosenkavalier," thus prevent- ing the N. Y. City Opera from do- ing the work that season. City Center apparently doesn’t worry over these things. It’s gone ahead and scheduled the U. S. premiere next spring of another Strauss opera. "Die Frau Ohne Schatten.” The Met’s going along, too. It also will present an American preem of a Strauss opus this season, in “Ara- bella,” for quite a Manhattan run on Strauss this semester. George Szell in rousing though faithful readings of preludes to Meistersinger.” "Rienzi,” "Tann- hauser” and "Dutchman.” Brahms: Concerto No. 1 in D Minor (RCA Victor). A warm, dra- matic though poetic reading of the masterwork by Artur Rubinstein, who is. however, a little too pound- 1 Carol Fox, head of the nevvly- ing at times. Fritz Reiner and Chi! formed Chicago Lyric Theatre Symph add vivid, driving support; which had a successful teeoff in its right from the impressive opening, | debut season last month, was in Longhair Bits for an overall exciting as well as artistic album. Reed: La Fiesta Mexicans (Mer- cury). "Fiesta* and some other at- tractive, unfamiliar showpieces for symphonic band, in an unusual offering by the Eastman Symphonic Wind Ensemble under Frederick Fennell. Beethoven: Harp Quartet & Haydn: Lark Quartet (Bluebird). Attractive coupling of the lyric, ex- pressive Beethoven and the light, gay Haydn, played with clarity and fine phrasing, in a sensitive ap- proach, by a gifted young group, the American Art Quartet. Broil. F. W. Moller, who composed their , tender, graceful airs w'oven in well theme-song, "The Happy Wan-! with powerful choruses, and all ex- derer.” “Ein Hennlein' Weiss” ; cellently done by the Pro Musica (Little White Hen* is charming. Al- of Stuttgart under Rolf Reinhardt, bum contains a lovely coloratura I P°PPy Westmin- duet in "Erst Kommt Das Linke i^ er) * Ballet suite, very lyrical for •• 4 „ the most part, has some lovely mu- ,1. mnvin . l e , s i sic in it, winding with the familiar i'll, . ? * 5 ? hlat , e - “« 1 , n exciting Russian Sailors Dance. A 1. nZ w lC L.., The Brahms Itn Sill- ver y engaging work, sensitively len Naeht is overproduced and played by the Vienna State Opera too heavy, losing some simplicity, orch under Hermann Scherchen. 3 lie kids, as expected, sing en- Wagner: Overtures (Columbia), chantingly throughout. Bron. The N. Y, Philharmonic under Atst. Mgr. and Pro** Head of Met Opera Francis Robinson U cm optimistic kid as ko fools Opera s Golden Day Is Always ISoiv * * * ao interesting byline piece in tke upcoming 49 th Anniversary IS umber of J^rIFFy ou r soon N. Y. over last weekend, slarting preparations for an enlarged five- week Chi opera season next year . . . Darius Milhaud will have a new viola concerto ready for Wil- liam Primrose in 1956. Latter leaves today (Wed.) for Xmas holi- days in London, followed by a six- week tour of Europe, starting Jan. 2. Due back in U.S. in mid-Feb- ruary . . . Wolfgang Stresemann quitting next spring as conductor of the Toledo Orchestra. Dimitri Mitropoulos has been re-signed as musical director of the N! Y. Philharmonic for ’55-’56. It will mark his fifth season as musical director . . . Frances Yeend, N. Y. City Opera Co. so- prano, will sing four performances as Eva in "Meistersinger” at the Teatro Lyceo, Barcelona, in Janu- ary, for her first appearance in Spain . . . The League of Com- posers aad International Society for Contemporary Music have amalgamated. Roger Sessions is chairman . . . Lou Snyder is back in the press department of the Met Opera, doubling up with his duties as secretary of the National Coun- cil of the Met. Burton Wohl left the Met’s press setup. Pianist Lenore Engdahl signed an MGM Record pact . . . Valerie Bettis was guest speaker at the N. Y. Ballet Club meet Sunday (12) . . . Diana Adams and Andre Eglev- sky will dance at the annual din- ner-concert of the American Fund for Israel Institutions at the Wal- dorf, N. Y., Jan. 5. Inl’l Dance Festival Set for Genoa in ’55 An international dance festival is being prepped in Genoa. Italy, for the first time. Civic authorities have appointed a committee to set it up, with Trudy Goth, of New York, named American rep. An* other New Yorker, Dale Wasser- man, has been set as artistic super- visor, and will go over next spring. Known as the Genoa Dance Fes- tival, and planned as an annual af- fair, event is tentatively skedded for June 25 to Aug. 5. 1955. Both ballet and modern dance groups will be included, each giving sev- eral performances. Fest will be held in two open-air theatres in a park at Nervi, suburb of Genoa, on the Adriatic coast. Marquis de Cuevas Grand Bal- let and the Azuma Kabuki Co. of Japan have been signed already. The N. Y. City Ballet is ateo re- ported practically signed, but not agreed on dates. Management is also angling for the Ram Gopal troupe of India and a German bal- let company. It hopes also to get one or two American soloists to appear. Budget, though not set yet, reportedly will be consider- able. NBC’s Adler to Guest With N.Y. Choir & Orch Peter Herman Adler, director and conductor of the NBC Tele- vision Opera, will be first guest conductor for the N. Y. Concert Choir and Orchestra at their March 11 Town Hall, N. Y., con- cert. Adler will conduct a concert ver- sion of Dvorak’s "Rusalka” in the work’s first New York perform- ance.