Marcia Van Dresser

Marcia Van Dresser (1877 – July 11, 1937) was an American operatic soprano, recitalist and actress. She was sometimes referred to as a mezzo-soprano.[1]

Marcia Van Dresser
Van Dresser, circa 1901
Born1877
Memphis, Tennessee
DiedJuly 11, 1937 (aged 59–60)
London, England
OccupationActress, singer

Biography

She was born in 1877 and spent her early life in Memphis and later studied for opera with Hermine Bosetti and Jean de Reszke. She was a member of The Famous Original Bostonians before joining Alice Nielsen Company in 1898 for Victor Herbert's The Fortune Teller and Singing Girl. Studies voice with NYC’s Mrs. Sarah Robinson-Duff herself trained in Paris by Marchesi.[2] Dresser appeared as an actress in 1902 with Otis Skinner in a revival of Francesca di Rimini.[3] Apparently Van Dresser never recorded for the gramophone industry. Dresser joined NY's Metropolitan Opera Company, and sang across Europe before joining The Chicago Opera in 1915 for her major opera roles.[4] In April 1918 she appeared at Aeolian Hall singing Haydn in Italian, Debussy and Fauré in French. The Haydn work had been arranged by the late Pauline Viardot.[5]

She died in London on July 11, 1937 after a long illness.[6]

References
  1. Music; Miss Van Dresser's Recital, (The New York Times, March 30, 1920)
  2. Alice Nielsen and the Gayety of Nations, by Dall Wilson, 2016 edition.
  3. Pictorial History of the American Theatre: 1860-1985, by Daniel Blum, orig. published 1950, this version updated to 1985
  4. Alice Nielsen and the Gayety of Nations, by Dall Wilson, 2016 edition.
  5. Marcia Van Dresser Sings, The New York Times, April 17, 1918
  6. Marcia Van Dresser Is Dead in London; American Soprano Had Sung With the Bostonians and Metropolitan Opera, The New York Times, July 12, 1937
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