Virginia MacWatters facts for kids

Virginia MacWatters (born June 19, 1912 – died November 5, 2005) was a talented American singer and a university professor. She was known as a coloratura soprano, which means she could sing very high notes with great skill. Virginia MacWatters had a long career performing in operas and on Broadway, and later became a beloved teacher.

Early Life and Music

Virginia MacWatters was born in Philadelphia on June 19, 1912. Her parents were Frederick K. and Idoleein MacWatters.

• She started learning piano at age eight at a music school in Philadelphia.
• When she was twelve, she won a special scholarship to study singing. Her teacher, Henrietta Conrad, had been a singer at the Dresden Royal Opera.
• Virginia first sang in a play called The Pirates of Penzance when she was still in junior high school. She played the character Mabel.

After finishing school at the Philadelphia Normal School for Teachers, Virginia worked as a substitute teacher. She also sang in churches around Philadelphia to help pay for her music studies.

A Career in Singing

Virginia MacWatters received another scholarship to the famous Curtis Institute of Music in Philadelphia. There, she studied opera and acting. After graduating from Curtis, she continued her singing lessons in New York City with Estelle Liebling, a well-known voice teacher.

Broadway and Opera Debut

In 1941, Virginia won second prize in the Metropolitan Opera Auditions of the Air. This helped her start her professional singing career.

• She made her debut with the New Opera Company.
• From 1942 to 1944, she performed on Broadway in a show called Rosalinda. This show was based on the famous opera Die Fledermaus.
• Virginia sang the role of Adele in 611 performances! The music for the show was conducted by Erich Korngold.
• In 1944, she made her first official opera performance at the San Francisco Opera. She played Musetta in the opera La bohème.

More Broadway and City Opera

Virginia MacWatters also appeared in other Broadway shows:

• She played Serpina in La serva padrona in 1944.
• In 1945, she was Brook Whitney in Mr Strauss Goes to Boston.

From 1946 to 1951, Virginia sang at the New York City Opera. She performed many different roles, including:

• Mabel in The Pirates of Penzance
• Gilda in Rigoletto
• Rosina in Il barbiere di Siviglia (The Barber of Seville)
• Susanna in Le nozze di Figaro (The Marriage of Figaro)
• Olympia in Les contes d'Hoffmann (The Tales of Hoffmann)
• Zerbinetta in Ariadne auf Naxos

International and Metropolitan Opera

In 1947, Virginia MacWatters sang in England at Covent Garden. This was part of the first opera season there after World War II where operas were sung in English. She performed the main role in Manon and Sophie in Der Rosenkavalier.

She also sang at the New Orleans Opera Association in several operas:

• Il barbiere di Siviglia in 1949
• Die Fledermaus in 1955
• Le nozze di Figaro in 1956

For the famous Metropolitan Opera in New York, Virginia toured the country from 1951 to 1952. She played Adele in Die Fledermaus. Her first performance at the Met itself was also as Adele. From 1953 to 1955, she also sang in La bohème. She returned to the Met in 1957 for the role of Fiakermilli in Arabella.

A Dedicated Professor

In 1957, Virginia MacWatters began a new part of her career at Indiana University. She was offered a job teaching voice. For 25 years, she balanced performing and teaching.

• Her students lovingly called her "Miss Mac."
• She was very dedicated to her teaching.
• In 1979, she received a special award from Indiana University called the Frederic Bachman Lieber Memorial Award. This award is given for excellent teaching.

Virginia MacWatters retired in 1982 and became a Professor Emeritus. This means she kept her title even after retiring. She continued to teach private lessons after leaving the university.

Virginia MacWatters passed away on November 5, 2005, at the age of ninety-three.