Salt Lake Telegram | 1933-12-27 | Page 4 | In New York

IN NEW NEWYORK YORK By PAUL HARRISON NEW YORK YORK Hard Hard times have somewhat dimmed the luster of the Metropolitan Opera what with the shortened season opening a month later than usual and with some famous fanous fa- fa motis names and jewels missing from the he Golden horseshoe But a long lost part of the Mets Met's sparkle also has returned this year year year- along with a neatly framed liquor li 11 cense cease As it was in the beginning champagne is being served in the boxes during intermission and the big upstairs lounge with its old bar and many little tables is a busy place lace again Over coffee coHee and liqueurs the shirt and ermine boiled crowd now can discuss filch each preceding ing ng act and aria arlo and toast in vintage wines the new darlings of the opera Boxes for Rent I IThe The Horseshoe boxes 35 of them and all upholstered in red velvet are owned in perpetuity b by various wealthy people or by estates They fluctuate in value like seats seals on the stock exchange Originally they cost each a each a handsome sum which the fathers of the enterprise calculated would make up any Yet there might not have been any opera at all this season reason but bul for the ef efforts orts of Mme Lucrezia Borland Borl Bori Borland and Paul Cravath the latter successor suCcessor suc sue cessor to Otto Kahn as chairman of the association to raise an endowment endowment endow endow- ment fund However wc wealthy they are are most box owners are lre not above renting their spaces for certain nights or even an nn entire season A few weeks ago one box was advertised for rent for the opening night an unprecedented unprecedented unprecedented dented concession to what must have been pretty dire necessity Lost Lest season season season sea sea- son Otto Kahn himself rented his box to the Kingdon G Goulds who arent aren't even listed in the Social Regis Regis- ter Hes He's back now though am amis and andis is one of only eight owners who have not leased some of their seats for forthe forthe forthe the season Some boxes hold six others eight Owners who never have rented their boxes are Vincent Vincen Astor Edward Manville the dowager dowager dowager dow dow- ager Mrs Cornelius Vanderbilt J J.P. J. J P P. Morgan Frazier and Seward Webb I Many a haughty lorgnette is raised to o inspect the Morgan box because I Imore more often than not he lends It to business friends who are unknown in society A Shaky Start I It was 50 years ago that the Met first opened its doors to an excited I throng that went about exclaiming over the modernity and luxury of the he place which cost It was lighted with gas in those days but a far sighted architect had made provision to install electricity if such newfangled ideas of illumination ever became economically cable Looking over the list of patrons today oday you'd never guess gue s that the Metropolitan was a project which grew out 0 of a war of ol social ocial castes Operas previously had hadeen been een presented at the Academy of MusIc a small house which was bought up almost solidly by the seigneurs seigneurs seigneurs seig seig- of the old Knickerbocker re re- re- re gime girne So a group of what might be ae termed the rich newly-rich organized their own company Among them were J tames mes Roosevelt father of the president William K Vanderbilt and Robert Goelet Things went pretty badly at the opening when Faust was Wa present present- ed cd The conductor one Signor Vianes Via Via- nes nesi figured ed he e was as important as the artists themselves and had raised Cain until the harassed cLais elevated the orchestra nearly to the level of the stage As a result the singers were in almost total tota eclipse Shortly before curtain time came the distressing news that the sly old Academy o of Music Musi had got en an injunction to prevent Mme from appearing as Marta Maria The day was only partly saved when the stars star's daughter Lou Lou- ise stepped into the role and did a athe as the critics admitted her best But the critics didn't like the show at alL Especially uncomplimentary were they about the newly acquired acquire matronly curves of Christine Nils Nils- son ron Nobody was surprised when the Met lost on its first sea sea- son But It H emerged triumphant fo for all that because the rival company compan soon went out of existence