Charles Anthony Caruso (né Calogero Antonio Caruso; July 15, 1929 – February 15, 2012), better known by his

stage name A stage name is a pseudonym used by performers and entertainers—such as actors, comedians, singers, and musicians. Such professional aliases are adopted for a wide variety of reasons and they may be similar, or nearly identical, to an individu ...

of Charles Anthony, was an American

actor An actor or actress is a person who portrays a character in a performance. The actor performs "in the flesh" in the traditional medium of the theatre or in modern media such as film, radio, and television. The analogous Greek term is (), li ...

and

tenor A tenor is a type of classical music, classical male singing human voice, voice whose vocal range lies between the countertenor and baritone voice types. It is the highest male chest voice type. The tenor's vocal range extends up to C5. The lo ...

noted for his portrayal of

comprimario A comprimario is a small supporting role in an opera (or a singer who sings those roles). The word is derived from the Italian "''con primario''", or "with the primary", meaning that the ''comprimario'' role (or singer) is not a principal role (or ...

characters in

opera Opera is a form of theatre in which music is a fundamental component and dramatic roles are taken by singers. Such a "work" (the literal translation of the Italian word "opera") is typically a collaboration between a composer and a librett ...

. Anthony had the distinction of appearing in more performances at the

Metropolitan Opera The Metropolitan Opera (commonly known as the Met) is an American opera company based in New York City, resident at the Metropolitan Opera House at Lincoln Center, currently situated on the Upper West Side of Manhattan. The company is operat ...

than any other performer.Woolfe, Zachary (15 February 2012)
"Charles Anthony Dies at 82; Sang 2,928 Times at Met"
''

The New York Times ''The New York Times'' (''the Times'', ''NYT'', or the Gray Lady) is a daily newspaper based in New York City with a worldwide readership reported in 2020 to comprise a declining 840,000 paid print subscribers, and a growing 6 million paid ...

''. Retrieved 16 February 2012 He celebrated his fiftieth anniversary with the company in 2004, and gave his farewell in the role of the aged Emperor Altoum in ''Turandot'', at the Met, on January 28, 2010.Barron, James (27 January 2010)
"After 57 Years at the Met, a Tenor's Swan Song"
''The New York Times'' (City Room). Retrieved 30 January 2010

Early years

Anthony was born in

New Orleans, Louisiana New Orleans ( , ,New Orleans
Merriam-Webster. ; french: La Nouvelle-Orléans , es, Nuev ...

, the child of immigrants from

Sicily (man) it, Siciliana (woman) , population_note = , population_blank1_title = , population_blank1 = , demographics_type1 = Ethnicity , demographics1_footnotes = , demographi ...

. He studied music at

Loyola University New Orleans Loyola University New Orleans is a Private university, private Jesuit university in New Orleans, New Orleans, Louisiana. Originally established as Loyola College in 1904, the institution was chartered as a university in 1912. It bears the name o ...

, where he studied under Dorothy Hulse, also the teacher of

Audrey Schuh Audrey Schuh (born June 11, 1931) is an American operatic soprano. She studied at Loyola University of the South. Schuh was born in New Orleans, Louisiana. Her first leading role with the New Orleans Opera Association (at the age of eighteen) wa ...

and

Harry Theyard Harry Theyard (né Harry L. Theard, Jr, on 28 September 1929, in New Orleans) is an American operatic tenor. Theyard is a 1957 graduate of Loyola University of the South, where he studied under Dorothy Hulse, who was also the teacher of Audrey Sch ...

; he graduated in 1951. The tenor sang the role of the Messenger in ''Il trovatore'' at the

New Orleans Opera Opera has long been part of the musical culture of New Orleans, Louisiana. Operas have regularly been performed in the city since the 1790s, and since the early 19th century, New Orleans has had a resident company regularly performing opera in ad ...

Association in 1947. At the age of twenty-two, he auditioned under his birth name for the Metropolitan Opera's Auditions of the Air. He won the auditions, but Sir

Rudolf Bing Sir Rudolf Bing, KBE (January 9, 1902 – September 2, 1997) was an Austrian-born British opera impresario who worked in Germany, the United Kingdom and the United States, most notably being General Manager of the Metropolitan Opera in New York ...

convinced him to drop his surname, saying that it would invite comparisons with

Enrico Caruso Enrico Caruso (, , ; 25 February 1873 – 2 August 1921) was an Italian operatic first lyrical tenor then dramatic tenor. He sang to great acclaim at the major opera houses of Europe and the Americas, appearing in a wide variety of roles (74) ...

At the Metropolitan

Anthony made his debut at the Metropolitan on March 6, 1954, playing the role of the Simpleton in ''

Boris Godunov Borís Fyodorovich Godunóv (; russian: Борис Фёдорович Годунов; 1552 ) ruled the Tsardom of Russia as ''de facto'' regent from c. 1585 to 1598 and then as the first non-Rurikid tsar from 1598 to 1605. After the end of his ...

'', which was sung in English. Critics were impressed; ''

'' wrote, "Mr. Anthony had better be careful. If he does other bit parts so vividly, he'll be stamped as a character singer for life." This proved true although Anthony performed some larger roles early in his career (including Don Ottavio, to the Donna Anna of

Herva Nelli Herva Nelli (January 9, 1909May 31, 1994) was an Italian-American operatic soprano. Biography Named after the French socialist Gustave Hervé, she was born in Florence, where she attended a convent school. At the age of ten, however, she and her ...

, in ''Don Giovanni''), he made his mark as a ''

'' singer. On February 17, 1992, following Act II of a performance of

Puccini Giacomo Puccini (Lucca, 22 December 1858Bruxelles, 29 November 1924) was an Italian composer known primarily for his operas. Regarded as the greatest and most successful proponent of Italian opera after Verdi, he was descended from a long lin ...

's ''

Tosca ''Tosca'' is an opera in three acts by Giacomo Puccini to an Italian libretto by Luigi Illica and Giuseppe Giacosa. It premiered at the Teatro dell'Opera di Roma, Teatro Costanzi in Rome on 14 January 1900. The work, based on Victorien Sardou's 1 ...

'', Anthony was honored in an onstage ceremony on the occasion of his breaking the record of George Cehanovsky for most appearances by an artist at the Metropolitan Opera. By the time of his retirement, Anthony had performed 2,928 times with the company, over fifty-six seasons.

Performance record: Anthony, Charles (Tenor)
on the MetOpera Database. Retrieved 30 January 2010 He was also an honorary member of

International Alliance of Theatrical Stage Employees The International Alliance of Theatrical Stage Employees, Moving Picture Technicians, Artists and Allied Crafts of the United States, Its Territories and Canada, known as simply the International Alliance of Theatrical Stage Employees (IATSE or ...

Local One in New York City. Following his retirement from the Metropolitan Opera, he lived in

Tampa, Florida Tampa () is a city on the Gulf Coast of the United States, Gulf Coast of the U.S. state of Florida. The city's borders include the north shore of Tampa Bay and the east shore of Old Tampa Bay. Tampa is the largest city in the Tampa Bay area and ...

, where he died at his home from kidney failure at the age of 82.

On television

Anthony was included in many of the Met's telecasts, including ''Otello'' (conducted by

James Levine James Lawrence Levine (; June 23, 1943 – March 9, 2021) was an American conductor and pianist. He was music director of the Metropolitan Opera from 1976 to 2016. He was terminated from all his positions and affiliations with the Met on March 1 ...

, 1979), ''Elektra'' (with

Birgit Nilsson Märta Birgit Nilsson (17 May 1918 – 25 December 2005) was a celebrated Swedish dramatic soprano. Although she sang a wide répertoire of operatic and vocal works, Nilsson was best known for her performances in the operas of Richard Wagner a ...

, 1980), ''Un ballo in maschera'' (with

Katia Ricciarelli Catiuscia Maria Stella Ricciarelli (born 16 January 1946), known as Katia Ricciarelli (), is an Italian soprano and actress. Biography Born in Rovigo, Veneto, to a very poor family, she struggled during her younger years when she studied music. ...

, 1980), ''Il trittico'' (with

Renata Scotto Renata Scotto (born 24 February 1934) is an Italian soprano and opera director. Recognized for her sense of style, her musicality, and as a remarkable singer-actress, Scotto is considered one of the preeminent singers of her generation. Since r ...

, 1981), ''Rigoletto'' (with

Louis Quilico Louis Quilico, (January 14, 1925 – July 15, 2000) was a Canadian opera singer. One of the leading dramatic baritones of his day, he was an ideal interpreter of the great Italian and French composers, especially Giuseppe Verdi. He was often ...

in the title role, 1981), ''Der Rosenkavalier'' (with Dame

Kiri Te Kanawa Dame Kiri Jeanette Claire Te Kanawa , (; born Claire Mary Teresa Rawstron, 6 March 1944) is a retired New Zealand opera singer. She had a full lyric soprano voice, which has been described as "mellow yet vibrant, warm, ample and unforced". Te ...

, 1982), ''Idomeneo'' (produced by

Jean-Pierre Ponnelle Jean-Pierre Ponnelle (19 February 1932 – 11 August 1988) was a French opera Opera is a form of theatre in which music is a fundamental component and dramatic roles are taken by singers. Such a "work" (the literal translation of the ...

, 1982), ''Tannhäuser'' (with

Richard Cassilly Richard Cassilly (December 14, 1927 – January 30, 1998) was an American operatic tenor who had a major international opera career between 1954–90. Cassilly "was a mainstay in the heldentenor repertory in opera houses around the world for 30 y ...

, 1982), ''Don Carlos'' (opposite

Plácido Domingo José Plácido Domingo Embil (born 21 January 1941) is a Spanish opera singer, conductor, and arts administrator. He has recorded over a hundred complete operas and is well known for his versatility, regularly performing in Italian, French, ...

and

Mirella Freni Mirella Freni, OMRI (, born Mirella Fregni, 27 February 1935 – 9 February 2020) was an Italian operatic soprano who had a career of 50 years and appeared at major international opera houses. She received international attention at the Gl ...

, 1983), ''Ernani'' (with

Luciano Pavarotti Luciano Pavarotti (, , ; 12 October 19356 September 2007) was an Italian operatic tenor who during the late part of his career crossed over into popular music, eventually becoming one of the most acclaimed tenors of all time. He made numerou ...

in the name part, 1983), ''Lohengrin'' (with

Peter Hofmann Peter Hofmann (22 August 1944 – 30 November 2010) was a German tenor who had a successful performance career within the fields of opera, rock, pop, and musical theatre. He first rose to prominence as a heldentenor at the Bayreuth festival's ' ...

, 1986), ''Dialogues des Carmélites'' (directed by

John Dexter John Dexter (2 August 1925 – 23 March 1990) was an English theatre, opera and film director. Theatre Born in Derby, Derbyshire, England, Dexter left school at the age of fourteen to serve in the British Army during the Second World War. F ...

, 1987), ''Ariadne auf Naxos'' (with

Jessye Norman Jessye Mae Norman (September 15, 1945 – September 30, 2019) was an American opera singer and recitalist. She was able to perform dramatic soprano roles, but refused to be limited to that voice type. A commanding presence on operatic, concert ...

, 1988), ''Il barbiere di Siviglia'' (1988), ''Un ballo in maschera'' (staged by Piero Faggioni, 1991), ''La fanciulla del West'' (1992), ''Stiffelio'' (1993), ''Il tabarro'' (with

Teresa Stratas Teresa Stratas (born May 26, 1938) is a retired operatic soprano from Canada of Greek descent. She is especially well known for her award-winning recording of Alban Berg's ''Lulu''. Early life and career Stratas was born Anastasia Stratakis to ...

, 1994), ''Simon Boccanegra'' (1995), ''Otello'' (1995), ''Die Meistersinger'' (2001), ''Fedora'' (1997), ''Samson et Dalila'' (1998), and, finally, ''Turandot'' (with

Maria Guleghina Maria Agasovna Guleghina, russian: Mapия Aгacoвнa Гулeгинa, uk, Марія Агасівна Гулегіна, hy, Մարիա Գուլեգինա (née Meytardjan (russian: Мейтарджян); born 9 August 1959) is a Soviet-born ope ...

, 2009). Early in his career, he appeared on live network television for

CBS CBS Broadcasting Inc., commonly shortened to CBS, the abbreviation of its former legal name Columbia Broadcasting System, is an American commercial broadcast television and radio network serving as the flagship property of the CBS Entertainm ...

in an adaptation of

Hector Berlioz In Greek mythology, Hector (; grc, Ἕκτωρ, Hektōr, label=none, ) is a character in Homer's Iliad. He was a Trojan prince and the greatest warrior for Troy during the Trojan War. Hector led the Trojans and their allies in the defense o ...

' sacred oratorio ''

L'enfance du Christ ''L'enfance du Christ'' (''The Childhood of Christ''), Opus 25, is an oratorio by the French composer Hector Berlioz, based on the Holy Family's flight into Egypt (see Gospel of Matthew 2:13). Berlioz wrote his own words for the piece. Most of it ...

'' (1964) under the musical direction of

Alfredo Antonini Alfredo Antonini (May 31, 1901 – November 3, 1983) was a leading Italian-American symphony conductor and composer who was active on the international concert stage as well as on the CBS radio and television networks from the 1930s through the ea ...

(with

Sherrill Milnes Sherrill Milnes (born January 10, 1935) is an American dramatic baritone most famous for his Verdi roles. From 1965 until 1997 he was associated with the Metropolitan Opera. His voice is a high dramatic baritone, combining good legato with an inc ...

Giorgio Tozzi Giorgio Tozzi (January 8, 1923 – May 30, 2011) was an American operatic bass. He was a mainstay for many years with the Metropolitan Opera, and sang principal bass roles in nearly every major opera house worldwide. Career Tozzi was born Georg ...

and

Ara Berberian Ara Berberian ( hy, Արա Բերբերյան, May 14, 1930 – February 21, 2005) was an American bass and actor who had an active international career in operas, concerts, and musicals from the early 1960s until his retirement from the st ...

Studio recordings

In 1956 and 1957, the tenor recorded excerpts from ''Les contes d'Hoffmann'', ''Pagliacci'', ''La périchole'' (with

Patrice Munsel Patrice Munsel (born Patrice Beverly Munsil; May 14, 1925 – August 4, 2016) was an American coloratura soprano. Nicknamed "Princess Pat", she was the youngest singer ever to star at the Metropolitan Opera. Early years An only child, Patrice ...

and Theodor Uppman), and ''Don Pasquale'' (with

Salvatore Baccaloni Salvatore Baccaloni (14 April 190031 December 1969) was an Italian operatic bass, buffo artist, and actor. Life and career Baccaloni was born in Rome. After attending the Sistine Chapel choir school from age seven, he studied voice with the ce ...

) for the Metropolitan Opera Record Club. In 1982, Anthony recorded Gastone, in ''La traviata'' (which he had sung opposite

Maria Callas Maria Callas . (born Sophie Cecilia Kalos; December 2, 1923 – September 16, 1977) was an American-born Greek soprano who was one of the most renowned and influential opera singers of the 20th century. Many critics praised her ''bel cant ...

, in 1958), with Levine leading Stratas, Domingo, and

Cornell MacNeil Cornell MacNeil (September 24, 1922 – July 15, 2011) was an American operatic baritone known for his exceptional voice and long career with the Metropolitan Opera, which spanned 642 performances in twenty-six roles. F. Paul Driscoll wrote in ''O ...

. In 1990, he recorded the role of the Messenger, in ''Aïda'', conducted by Levine.

Videography

* Mozart: ''Idomeneo'' (1982), Deutsche Grammophon DVD, 00440-073-4234 * '' The Metropolitan Opera Gala 1991'', Deutsche Grammophon DVD, 00440-073-4582 * ''

James Levine's 25th Anniversary Metropolitan Opera Gala ''James Levine's 25th Anniversary Metropolitan Opera Gala'' was a concert, lasting (including intermissions) approximately eight hours, that the Metropolitan Opera staged in 1996 in honour of its then principal conductor and artistic director. Exc ...

'' (1996), Deutsche Grammophon DVD, B0004602-09

Death

Anthony died on February 15, 2012 in

, from kidney failure, aged 82.

References

* Hamilton, David. (1987).
The Metropolitan Opera Encyclopedia: A Comprehensive Guide to the World of Opera
'. New York, London, Toronto, Sydney, Tokyo: Simon and Schuster. p. 23. . *Porterfield, Christopher

''

Time Time is the continued sequence of existence and events that occurs in an apparently irreversible succession from the past, through the present, into the future. It is a component quantity of various measurements used to sequence events, to ...

'', March 7, 2004 * Sadie, Stanley and Christina Bashford. (1992).
The New Grove Dictionary of Opera
'. London: Macmillan Publishers Ltd. Vol. 1, p. 146. .

External links

* (as Ruiz, with Renata Scotto and Luciano Pavarotti (1976).
Discography
(Capon's Lists of Opera Recordings) {{DEFAULTSORT:Anthony, Charles 1929 births American operatic tenors 2012 deaths American people of Italian descent Musicians from New Orleans Loyola University New Orleans alumni Deaths from kidney failure 20th-century American male opera singers 21st-century American male opera singers Singers from Louisiana