Clamma Dale
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Clamma Churita Dale (born 1948) is an American
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 ...
tic
soprano A soprano () is a type of classical female singing voice and has the highest vocal range of all voice types. The soprano's vocal range (using scientific pitch notation) is from approximately middle C (C4) = 261  Hz to "high A" (A5) = 880&n ...
. She portrayed "Bess" in the highly successful 1976
Houston Grand Opera Houston Grand Opera (HGO) is an American opera company located in Houston, Texas. Founded in 1955 by German-born impresario Walter Herbert and three local Houstonians,Giesberg, Robert I., Carl Cunningham, and Alan Rich. ''Houston Grand Opera at ...
production of ''
Porgy and Bess ''Porgy and Bess'' () is an English-language opera by American composer George Gershwin, with a libretto written by author DuBose Heyward and lyricist Ira Gershwin. It was adapted from Dorothy Heyward and DuBose Heyward's play '' Porgy'', itse ...
''. The show was transferred from Houston to Broadway and Dale was awarded a 1977
Drama Desk Award The Drama Desk Award is an annual prize recognizing excellence in New York theatre. First bestowed in 1955 as the Vernon Rice Award, the prize initially honored Off-Broadway productions, as well as Off-off-Broadway, and those in the vicinity. Fo ...
for Best Actress in a musical and received a
Tony Award The Antoinette Perry Award for Excellence in Broadway Theatre, more commonly known as the Tony Award, recognizes excellence in live Broadway theatre. The awards are presented by the American Theatre Wing and The Broadway League at an annual cer ...
nomination. She won a Grammy award in 1978 for
Best Opera Recording The Grammy Award The Grammy Awards (stylized as GRAMMY), or simply known as the Grammys, are awards presented by the Recording Academy of the United States to recognize "outstanding" achievements in the music industry. They are regarded by m ...
of the Porgy & Bess soundtrack.


Early life and education

Dale was born and raised in
Chester, Pennsylvania Chester is a city in Delaware County, Pennsylvania, United States. Located within the Philadelphia Metropolitan Area, it is the only city in Delaware County and had a population of 32,605 as of the 2020 census. Incorporated in 1682, Chester is ...
. Her father was a jazz musician and she received much of her early musical training from him, playing the clarinet, cello, saxophone, piano, and guitar during her youth as well as singing in the school choir. She studied music at the Settlement Music School earned a bachelor's degree in music from the
Juilliard School The Juilliard School ( ) is a private performing arts conservatory in New York City. Established in 1905, the school trains about 850 undergraduate and graduate students in dance, drama, and music. It is widely regarded as one of the most el ...
in 1970. She earned her master's degree from the Juilliard School in 1975.


Career

After graduating from school, Dale worked as a first grade music teacher in Brooklyn until her singing career began to take off. Dale made her professional opera debut on February 20, 1973 as St. Teresa I in Virgil Thomson's '' Four Saints in Three Acts'' at the Vivian Beaumont Theater in a production mounted by 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 ...
. In 1974 she portrayed Bess for the first time at the
Los Angeles Civic Light Opera The Los Angeles Civic Light Opera (LACLO) was an American theatre/opera company in Los Angeles, California. Founded under the motto "Light Opera in the Grand Opera manner" in 1938 by impresario Edwin Lester, the organization presented fifty season ...
. In 1975 she won the
Walter W. Naumburg Foundation The Walter W. Naumburg Foundation sponsors competitions and provides awards for young classical musicians in North America. Founded in 1925, it operates the prestigious Naumburg Competition. Foundation and concerts It was founded in 1925 by Walt ...
's music competition which led to her New York City recital debut at
Town Hall In local government, a city hall, town hall, civic centre (in the UK or Australia), guildhall, or a municipal building (in the Philippines), is the chief administrative building of a city, town, or other municipality. It usually houses ...
in May 1976. She returned to the NYCO several times in the late 1970s to portray such roles as the Countess in ''
The Marriage of Figaro ''The Marriage of Figaro'' ( it, Le nozze di Figaro, links=no, ), K. 492, is a ''commedia per musica'' (opera buffa) in four acts composed in 1786 by Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart, with an Italian libretto written by Lorenzo Da Ponte. It premie ...
'', and Nedda in
Leoncavallo Ruggero (or Ruggiero) Leoncavallo ( , , ; 23 April 18579 August 1919) was an Italian opera composer and librettist. Although he produced numerous operas and other songs throughout his career it is his opera ''Pagliacci'' (1892) that remained his ...
's ''
Pagliacci ''Pagliacci'' (; literal translation, "Clowns") is an Italian opera in a prologue and two acts, with music and libretto by Ruggero Leoncavallo. The opera tells the tale of Canio, actor and leader of a commedia dell'arte theatrical company, who m ...
''. In 1975 she signed a three-year contract with the New York City Opera (NYCO) and made her NYCO debut in October 1975 as Antonia in Jacques Offenbach's '' Les Contes d'Hoffmann''. She returned to the NYCO several times in the late 1970s to portray such roles as the Countess in ''
The Marriage of Figaro ''The Marriage of Figaro'' ( it, Le nozze di Figaro, links=no, ), K. 492, is a ''commedia per musica'' (opera buffa) in four acts composed in 1786 by Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart, with an Italian libretto written by Lorenzo Da Ponte. It premie ...
'', and Nedda in
Leoncavallo Ruggero (or Ruggiero) Leoncavallo ( , , ; 23 April 18579 August 1919) was an Italian opera composer and librettist. Although he produced numerous operas and other songs throughout his career it is his opera ''Pagliacci'' (1892) that remained his ...
's ''
Pagliacci ''Pagliacci'' (; literal translation, "Clowns") is an Italian opera in a prologue and two acts, with music and libretto by Ruggero Leoncavallo. The opera tells the tale of Canio, actor and leader of a commedia dell'arte theatrical company, who m ...
''. Dale first drew wide acclaim in 1976 for her portrayal of "Bess" in ''
Porgy and Bess ''Porgy and Bess'' () is an English-language opera by American composer George Gershwin, with a libretto written by author DuBose Heyward and lyricist Ira Gershwin. It was adapted from Dorothy Heyward and DuBose Heyward's play '' Porgy'', itse ...
'' with the
Houston Grand Opera Houston Grand Opera (HGO) is an American opera company located in Houston, Texas. Founded in 1955 by German-born impresario Walter Herbert and three local Houstonians,Giesberg, Robert I., Carl Cunningham, and Alan Rich. ''Houston Grand Opera at ...
, a production which went on to a highly successful run at first the
Uris Theatre The Gershwin Theatre (originally the Uris Theatre) is a Broadway theater at 222 West 51st Street, on the second floor of the Paramount Plaza office building, in the Midtown Manhattan neighborhood of New York City. Opened in 1972, it is operated ...
and then the
Mark Hellinger Theatre The Mark Hellinger Theatre (formerly the 51st Street Theatre and the Hollywood Theatre) is a church building at 237 West 51st Street in the Midtown Manhattan neighborhood of New York City, which formerly served as a cinema and a Broadway thea ...
on Broadway in 1976 and 1977. She won the 1977 Drama Desk Award for Outstanding Actress in a musical and a Tony nomination. She won an In 1977 she performed as a soloist with the New York Philharmonic in the premiere of
Leonard Bernstein Leonard Bernstein ( ; August 25, 1918 – October 14, 1990) was an American conductor, composer, pianist, music educator, author, and humanitarian. Considered to be one of the most important conductors of his time, he was the first America ...
's ''Songfest'' in Washington D.C. In 1978, she won a Grammy Award for best Opera Performance for the Porgy & Bess soundtrack. In 1980, she sang at a gala concert celebrating the 35th anniversary of the
United Nations The United Nations (UN) is an intergovernmental organization whose stated purposes are to maintain international peace and international security, security, develop friendly relations among nations, achieve international cooperation, and be ...
. Later that year, she sang the roles of Giulietta and Antonia in '' Les Contes d'Hoffmann'' for her debut at the
Opéra national du Rhin The Opéra national du Rhin is an opera company which performs in Alsace, eastern France. It includes the Opéras in Strasbourg, in Mulhouse, where the Ballet de l'Opéra national du Rhin, also known as the Ballet Du Rhin, is based, and in Colmar, ...
, Nedda for her debut with the Opera Company of Philadelphia, and both the title role in '' Aida'' and Leonora in '' Il Trovatore'' at the opera house in Bogotá, Colombia. In 1983, Dale made her first appearance at the
Opéra National de Paris The Paris Opera (, ) is the primary opera and ballet company of France. It was founded in 1669 by Louis XIV as the , and shortly thereafter was placed under the leadership of Jean-Baptiste Lully and officially renamed the , but continued to be k ...
as Fata Morgana in '' The Love for Three Oranges''. She spent the next several years working in various opera houses in Paris, singing roles like Liu in
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 '' Turandot'', Musetta in Puccini's '' La bohème'', Pamina in ''
The Magic Flute ''The Magic Flute'' (German: , ), K. 620, is an opera in two acts by Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart to a German libretto by Emanuel Schikaneder. The work is in the form of a ''Singspiel'', a popular form during the time it was written that inclu ...
'', and the one-woman tour de force of the bloodthirsty title character in '' Erzsebet'', an opera by Charles Chaynes. In 1986, she appeared at the Opéra de Nancy et de Lorraine (now the Opéra national de Lorraine). In 1988 she sang Bess for her debut at the Theater des Westens in Berlin. The following year she portrayed Liu at the Deutsche Oper Berlin. She has given many recitals including two resulting from winning the Walter W. Naumburg voice competition. She gave recitals at Alice Tully Hall and
Carnegie Hall Carnegie Hall ( ) is a concert venue in Midtown Manhattan in New York City. It is at 881 Seventh Avenue (Manhattan), Seventh Avenue, occupying the east side of Seventh Avenue between West 56th Street (Manhattan), 56th and 57th Street (Manhatta ...
among other places. She appeared at the White House in a Gershwin evening on February 12, 1978, with pianist Neil Stannard. In 1991, she sang the world premiere of
John Duffy John Duffy may refer to: Sportspeople * John Duffy (footballer, born 1886) (1886–?), English football centre half for Bradford City * John Duffy (footballer, born 1922) (1922–1996), Scottish football right back for Clyde and Norwich * John Duf ...
's ''Time for Remembrance'' with the
Honolulu Symphony The Hawaii Symphony Orchestra, formerly known as Honolulu Symphony Orchestra, was founded in 1900. It is the second oldest orchestra in the USA west of the Rocky Mountains. The orchestra now plays at Neal S. Blaisdell Concert Hall and the Hawaii The ...
for the commemoration of the 50th anniversary of the attack on
Pearl Harbor Pearl Harbor is an American lagoon harbor on the island of Oahu, Hawaii, west of Honolulu. It was often visited by the Naval fleet of the United States, before it was acquired from the Hawaiian Kingdom by the U.S. with the signing of the Re ...
.


Personal life

Dale married Terry Shirk in 1981. He died suddenly of a heart attack in 1987.


Recordings

* ''
Porgy and Bess ''Porgy and Bess'' () is an English-language opera by American composer George Gershwin, with a libretto written by author DuBose Heyward and lyricist Ira Gershwin. It was adapted from Dorothy Heyward and DuBose Heyward's play '' Porgy'', itse ...
'' with the
Houston Grand Opera Houston Grand Opera (HGO) is an American opera company located in Houston, Texas. Founded in 1955 by German-born impresario Walter Herbert and three local Houstonians,Giesberg, Robert I., Carl Cunningham, and Alan Rich. ''Houston Grand Opera at ...
, 1990 RCA Victor. * Virgil Thomson's '' Four Saints in Three Acts'', 1992 Nonesuch. * ''Voice Of Bernstein'', 2005 Deutsche Grammophon.


References


External links

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Dale, Clamma 1948 births 20th-century American actresses Actresses from Pennsylvania African-American actresses 20th-century African-American women singers 20th-century American women opera singers African-American women opera singers American musical theatre actresses American operatic sopranos Classical musicians from Pennsylvania Date of birth missing (living people) Drama Desk Award winners Grammy Award winners Juilliard School alumni Living people People from Chester, Pennsylvania Singers from Pennsylvania 21st-century American women