Eleanor Painter Strong (September 12, 1885 – November 3, 1947) was an American opera singer and actress.

Early years and education

Strong was born in

Waterville, Iowa Waterville is a city in Paint Creek Township, Allamakee County, Iowa, United States. The population was 109 at the time of the 2020 census. History The first settlement in the neighborhood of what would become Waterville was in 1850. In 1854 ...

, as Eleanor Painter on September 12, 1885, to Mary Ellen and John Painter. She grew up in Colorado and later moved to

Manhattan Manhattan (), known regionally as the City, is the most densely populated and geographically smallest of the five boroughs of New York City. The borough is also coextensive with New York County, one of the original counties of the U.S. state ...

in New York City to pursue a singing career. In 1912, she studied singing in

Berlin Berlin ( , ) is the capital and largest city of Germany by both area and population. Its 3.7 million inhabitants make it the European Union's most populous city, according to population within city limits. One of Germany's sixteen constitue ...

, Germany.

Career

Strong debuted at

Covent Garden Covent Garden is a district in London, on the eastern fringes of the West End, between St Martin's Lane and Drury Lane. It is associated with the former fruit-and-vegetable market in the central square, now a popular shopping and tourist si ...

in London in 1913. She sang for five seasons with the Charlottenburg Opera in Berlin, interrupted by her roles in musicals. In New York City, between seasons in 1914, she starred in ''

The Lilac Domino ''Der lila Domino'' (''The Lilac Domino'') is an operetta in three acts composed by Charles Cuvillier. The original German libretto is by Emmerich von Gatti and Bela Jenbach, about a gambling count who falls in love at a masquerade ball with a n ...

'', and from 1915 to 1917, she starred as the title character in the operetta ''

The Princess Pat ''The Princess Pat'' is an operetta in three acts with music by Victor Herbert and book and lyrics by Henry Blossom. After an Atlantic City, New Jersey tryout in August 1915, it premiered on Broadway on September 29, 1915 at the Cort Theatre and r ...

'', a role written for her by composer

Victor Herbert Victor August Herbert (February 1, 1859 – May 26, 1924) was an American composer, cellist and conductor of English and Irish ancestry and German training. Although Herbert enjoyed important careers as a cello soloist and conductor, he is be ...

. Her operatic repertory included ''

Madame Butterfly ''Madama Butterfly'' (; ''Madame Butterfly'') is an opera in three acts (originally two) by Giacomo Puccini, with an Italian libretto by Luigi Illica and Giuseppe Giacosa. It is based on the short story "Madame Butterfly" (1898) by John Luther ...

'' and ''

Carmen ''Carmen'' () is an opera in four acts by the French composer Georges Bizet. The libretto was written by Henri Meilhac and Ludovic Halévy, based on the Carmen (novella), novella of the same title by Prosper Mérimée. The opera was first perfo ...

'', in New York City,

Philadelphia, Pennsylvania Philadelphia, often called Philly, is the largest city in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, the sixth-largest city in the U.S., the second-largest city in both the Northeast megalopolis and Mid-Atlantic regions after New York City. Sinc ...

, and Berlin. She also played in dramatic productions as well as musicals and operas. While in New York, she gave solo recitals accompanied by pianist

Alice Marion Shaw Alice Marion Shaw (born August 22, 1890) was an American composer, pianist, and teacher who was a well-known accompanist during the early 20th century. Shaw was one of three children born in Rockland, Maine, to Reverend Eurastus Melville Shaw an ...

Marriages and death

She married English actor and singer Wilfred Douthitt, also known as Louis Graveure, a

baritone A baritone is a type of classical male singing voice whose vocal range lies between the bass and the tenor voice-types. The term originates from the Greek (), meaning "heavy sounding". Composers typically write music for this voice in the r ...

, around 1916. In 1931 she married Major Charles Henry Strong, a businessman from

Cleveland, Ohio Cleveland ( ), officially the City of Cleveland, is a city in the U.S. state of Ohio and the county seat of Cuyahoga County. Located in the northeastern part of the state, it is situated along the southern shore of Lake Erie, across the U.S. ...

and settled there with him. Strong died on November 3, 1947 in

References

External links

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Portrait
(New York Public Library, Billy Rose collection) {{DEFAULTSORT:Strong, Eleanor American operatic sopranos 1880s births 1947 deaths Singers from Cleveland Singers from Iowa 20th-century American women opera singers Classical musicians from Ohio Classical musicians from Iowa Classical musicians from Colorado Singers from Colorado