parterre box

One of the cher public sent in this tidbit from the recently-published edition of The Letters of Noël Coward:

Went to hear Albanese as Manon Lescaut and it was a grave grave mistake on account of she didn’t ought to have attempted it for several reasons. Time’s Wingèd Chariot being the principal one. She sang most softly and looked like a neckless shrewmouse. Jussi Boerling did a Mary Martin and belted the living fuck out of her. He contrived this very subtly by the simple device of gripping her firmly by her shrinking shoulders, turning her bum to the audience and bellowing into her kisser.

Curiously, La Cieca has heard of a sequel to this incident. When reminded of this contretemps some decades later, Licia quipped, “Ah, Bjoerling era una salame!”