Happy 99th birthday to television legend and animal health advocate Betty White.
Happy 87th birthday mezzo-soprano Marilyn Horne.
On this day in 1958 Samuel Barber‘s Vanessa had its world premiere at the Met.
On this day in 1900 Puccini’s Tosca premiered in Rome.
Born on this day in 1905 actress Kay Francis.
Born on this day in 1938 mezzo-soprano Tatiana Troyanos.
On this day in 1934 soprano Lotte Lehmann made her Metropolitan Opera debut as Sieglinde.
Happy 86th birthday baritone Sherrill Milnes.
Happy 65th birthday soprano/mezzo-soprano Waltraud Meier.
Born on this day in 1926 soprano Evelyn Lear.
Born on this day in 1913 actress Loretta Young.
On this day in 1875 the Palais Garnier was inaugurated in Paris.
Happy 84th birthday soprano/mezzo-soprano Grace Bumbry.
Born on this day in 1905 actress Anna May Wong.
On this day in 1913 soprano Frieda Hempel sang her second performance at the Metropolitan Opera, the Queen in Les Huguenots opposite Emmy Destinn, Enrico Caruso, Dinh Gilly, Léon Rothier and Adamo Didur.
Born on this day in 1923 actress Valentina Cortese.
On this day in 1950, the Metropolitan Opera performed their new production of Fledermaus with a cast including Patrice Munsel, Risë Stevens, Ljuba Welitsch, Set Svanholm and John Brownlee.
On this day in 1954 the Harold Arlen–Truman Capote musical House of Flowers opened on Broadway.
Born on this day in 1936 actress Mary Tyler Moore.
Happy 86th birthday to the sublime Dame Maggie Smith.
Born on this day in 1901 actress Marlene Dietrich.
Happy 82nd birthday soprano Adriana Maliponte.
Happy 39th birthday soprano Sonya Yoncheva.
On this day in 1950 José Ferrer and Gloria Swanson opened a Broadway revival of Twentieth Century.
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.
