“She said also her costume would probably be ‘a blaze of jewels,’ patterned after the image of a Madonna she saw in Rome last year…”
“The tantalization of the monk in the luxurious apartments of Thaïs was daring and earnest in its realism.”
“Behold her now with her sleeves rolled up to her dimpled elbows, forewoman of the great Chicago voice factory, state bouncer and maker of contracts!”
“The uncharitable suggestion is made that the Australian diva has taken umbrage at Oscar Hammerstein’s enthusiasm over Mary Garden…”
“A wonderful collection of them in Mary Garden, mushroom and Cossack turban styles; they are trimmed with quills, wings, French flowers and soft messaline ribbon.”
“Miss Mary Garden in her dressing room at the Philadelphia Opera House this afternoon, denied that she was soon to marry Prince Movrocordato, as reported in a special cable from Paris in THE NEW YORK TIMES to-day.”
“Miss Garden has made a new and striking impersonation as the heroine of this opera.”
The Mary Garden Cocktail.
“It was Thais, Massenet’s marvelously dexterous lyric drama of passion, opera of writhings, opera that repels in its most tremendous moment, yet allures and conquers, that swept grand opera to a new night of triumph.”
“When Vanni Marcoux as Scarpia in Tosca pursued Mary Garden, a Floria Tosca, around his room on the stage at the Boston Opera House a week ago Monday night, seized her in an amorous frenzy and threw her upon a couch, a part of cultured Boston gasped.”
“For heaven’s sake, learn to act also…”
The “gown of a thousand mirrors” arrived in New York Wednesday, direct from Rochburn, near Monte Carlo. The Chicago Grand Company’s Mary Garden brought it, and the steamer La France made port with both.
Among the highlights of the first performance of Camille was the fact that its only solo was a Parisian ballad sung by ‘Our Mary’ Garden atop a table in her fashionable salon and its only chorus a few ribald lines by a roomful of guests who had drunk enough champagne to be feeling pretty gay.
“Mary Garden, the famous opera singer who gained particular fame through her rendition of Salome, is to become a nun…”
“Mary Garden has adopted sea massages instead of nude bathing as a means of reducing.”
The singer refuses point blank to discuss the subject.
Mary Garden wondered last night what would have happened to her if, instead of coming to America with her parents, she had gone to a little town in Scotland, married and settled down.
She appeared almost like the ghost of Mélisande…
La Cieca apologizes for her tardiness in saluting dear Mary this week, but she thinks you will agree it’s worth the wait.
“But Thais is a French opera.”
Miss Garden smiled. “You probably have never seen a thin Violetta,” she exclaimed. “You’ll find that that will make a difference.”
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.
