Eileen Barnett as Florence Foster Jenkins. Photos courtesy of ICT.
It is said that Carnegie Hall could have been sold out twice that night given the thousands of people standing outside hoping to somehow score a seat to see Florence Foster Jenkins in 1944, the Diva of Din who was widely maligned for her lack of vocal talent.
But ultimately, no amount of ridicule could have stopped the sheer force and determination of Jenkins, whose concert 70 years ago on October 25 was a testament to the idea that we often have to dismiss (if not outright shamelessly abandon) what society thinks of us. Which is precisely why Long Beach’s International City Theatre (ICT) is taking on a relatively unknown stage-version of her tale, Glorious!
Dubbed the “First Lady of the Sliding Scale,” Jenkins attracted a coterie of admirers thanks to her unwavering belief that to be happy is do what you want to do—and that same, distilled belief in the self is precisely what attracted ICT Artistic Director Caryn Desai.
“You don’t learn until you’re older that it’s not money that’s gonna make you happy,” Desai said. “All too often, we limit ourselves in life because of how society thinks of us or because the rules used while we were growing up become walls rather than guides. Florence knew what she wanted to do and that is something we can all learn from.”
The famed Carnegie performance, in front of 3,000 people, occurred during war time in 1944. Florence, ever the patriotic person, opted to hock her furniture to fund the performance while advertising the concert as a form of support to the servicemen and USO. That similar spirit, albeit sans the furniture liquidation, follows ICT’s upcoming performance this Saturday as the production of Glorious! falls on the 70th anniversary of Jenkins’s appearance at Carnegie Hall.
“We wanted to do something that supported veterans, we wanted to make that same connection,” Desai said. “That is why this particular performance is benefitting Fisher House Foundation, a service dedicated to providing the families of veterans homes while they recover at the VA Hospital in Long Beach.”
Though the performance’s timing with the concert’s 70th anniversary was purely coincidental—“I wish I was so astute that i choose it for that reason but I can’t claim that,” Desai lamented—ICT has taken special measures to mark the jubilee.
Through research, ICT discovered the original program from the 1944 performance and have made copies with the actors’ signatures to hand out to attendees. Additionally, copies of the few and rare recordings of Jenkins will be given to a handful of lucky(?) audience members.
While Desai can’t say she was astute, you can perhaps call her attention to Jenkins precocious given that Hollywood is taking note: Meryl Streep has signed on to the play the Diva of Din in an upcoming film version of the singer’s tale, alongside Hugh Grant, who will play the songstress’s boyfriend.
Like many artists, Jenkins didn’t live on to see her work celebrated in the way that it currently is; the opera soprano died one month after her sold-out Carnegie Hall performance. But like all great things in life, her tale is only better with age—or more cringing. And both are something we can raise our glasses to, for if you can’t laugh at the bitter things, all you’re left with is bitterness.
For more information and tickets, click here.