I first heard of Florence Foster Jenkins (1868-1944) on Clyde Gilmour’s CBC program called Gilmour’s Albums. (It was on every Sunday for four decades and when he died it died with him. A huge loss on both counts.) Clyde told the story of Florence at least once a year and played a cut from one of her albums, which included a recording from her last concert, which was at Carnegie Hall.
Florence was born in Wilkes-Barre, Pennsylvania, had music lessons as a child and wanted to further her education in the field. Her father said no but she was determined.
She eloped to Philadelphia with Dr. Frank Thornton Jenkins, a marriage that ended in divorce in 1902. She supported herself as a music teacher and pianist until her father died in 1909 and left her his estate. Finally she was able to pursue a career as a singer. She moved to New York where she would host and fund elaborate recitals in the ballroom of the Ritz-Carlton Hotel. She was the performer. In 1928 her mother died leaving her an inheritance that gave her total freedom to do nothing but sing. The problem was that Florence had little sense of pitch and rhythm, in fact she was barely capable of sustaining a note. She, however, was unaware of this and thought that the people who came to hear her sing came because she was so good. (She thought she had perfect pitch.) In fact they came because her concerts were hilarious. The Carnegie Hall concert was completely sold out; scalpers outside had no problems selling tickets at a huge profit. Poor Florence. She died a month later.
Britain’s Stephen Temperley has written a two person play called Souvenir which tells the story of Florence. On Sunday September 14th it was performed at Cameco Capitol Arts Centre, the first in the 10th season of First Stages theatre Company play readings. It was incredible.
FSTC producer and artistic director Robert Latimer played Cosme McMoon, Florence’s piano accompanist, and Diane Fabian played Florence. They were both brilliant.
Robert, pianist, singer, actor, director, producer and all round wonderful person was remarkable in his role. Cosme, a pianist and composer who had a hard time making a living in New York, was hired to accompany Florence and prepare her for her recitals. She insisted he be brutally honest with her. Of course he was not. They formed a remarkable friendship and, despite his frustrations, he genuinely cared for her, enduring the embarrassment of performing with her at her salons and the final wretchedness of Carnegie Hall.
To be able to sing as badly as Diane had to in the role of Florence takes a great deal of talent, a talent which was evident at the very end when she sings Ave Maria in the way that Florence heard herself sing in her head. Diane was superb both vocally (She had the entire Capitol audience in stitches for prolonged periods as she sang her way through complicated arias. I’m not sure how even Robert kept his face straight!) and as her portrayal of this sweet woman of whom a New York critic said “She was exceedingly happy in her work. It is a pity so few artists are…and that happiness was communicated, as if by magic, to her listeners.”
First Stages has done it again. And the next reading promises to be equally as impressive, albeit totally different. The Year of Magical Thinking, the powerful memoir she wrote after her husband and daughter died, has been adapted by author Joan Didion. Patricia Yeatman will star in this one woman play, directed by Robert. A not to be missed reading. Tickets at the box office, Cameco Capitol Arts Centre, 905.885.1071 or 800.434.5092.
Selena Forsyth
