WindyCityOperaman
Dan Soda (Windy City Operaman) is a Chicago native whose first visit to opera was at age 17 and Massenet’s Werther with Troyanos and Kraus. Nothing was ever the same. Opera and concert performances, recordings and video are an obsession. He prepares Parterre Box’s daily birthday and anniversary tributes. He also enjoys concerts, live theater and movies.
Born on this day in 1926 soprano Leonie Rysanek.
Born on this day in 1929 actress, later princess Grace Kelly.
On this day in 1725 Handel’s opera Tamerlano premiered in London.
On this day in 1955, the musical The Vamp opened at the Winter Garden Theater, to run 60 performances.
On this day in 1939 Ninotchka, starring Greta Garbo, premiered.
Born on this day in 1912 American actress June Havoc.
Happy 79th birthday to dramatic soprano Dame Gwyneth Jones!
Born on this day in 1692 French poet Louis Racine.
On this day in 1872 suffragist Susan B. Anthony voted for Ulysses S. Grant.
On this day in 1890 Prince Igor premiered in St. Petersburg.
On this day in 1952 Clarence Birdseye began marketing frozen peas.
On this day in 1971 the musical The Grass Harp opened at the Martin Beck Theater, to run seven performances.
On this day in 1611 Shakespeare’s romance The Tempest was presented by the King’s Men before James I at Whitehall Palace.
On this day in 1541 Michelangelo Buonarroti finished painting The Last Judgment in the Sistine Chapel.
On this day in 1940 Cole Porter‘s musical Panama Hattie opened at the 46th Street Theatre, to run 501 performances.
On this day in 1929, the Black Tuesday stock market crash triggered the Great Depression.
On this day in 1962 the revue Beyond the Fringe opened at the John Golden Theater, to run 673 performances.
On this day in 1931 Eugene O’Neill‘s Mourning Becomes Electra premiered at the Guild Theatre in New York City.
On this day in 1415 Henry V‘s forces defeated the larger French army at the Battle of Agincourt.
On this day in 1882 Robert Koch discovered Mycobacterium tuberculosis, the bacterium that causes tuberculosis.
On this day in 1967 the musical Henry, Sweet Henry opened at the Palace Theater for 80 performances.
On this day in 1883 the Metropolitan Opera House opened its inaugural season with Gounod’s Faust.
On this day in 1858 Jacques Offenbach‘s opera Orphée aux Enfers premiered in Paris.
On this day in 1973 the Sydney Opera House opened.
Tell us: What was the best of 2025?
Parterre Box concludes the thrilling first year of Talk of the Town by inviting your lightning rod opinions on several more categories of operatic argumentation.
