Amy Eliza Castles (25 July 1880 – 19 November 1951), was an Australian dramatic soprano.
Family
The daughter of Joseph Castles (1849-1933), and Mary Ellen Castles (1855-1937), née Fallon, Amy Eliza Castles was born in
Melbourne
Melbourne ( , ; Boonwurrung language, Boonwurrung/ or ) is the List of Australian capital cities, capital and List of cities in Australia by population, most populous city of the States and territories of Australia, Australian state of Victori ...
, Australia on 25 July 1880.
Her two sisters, Ethel Margaret "Dolly" Castles (1884–1971) and Eileen Anne Castles (1886–1970) were also highly regarded, talented sopranos.
Education
She was educated at
St Kilian's primary school and
St Mary's College.
Career
On 26 March 1910 she sang the title role in the Australian premiere of
Giacomo Puccini
Giacomo Puccini (22 December 1858 29 November 1924) was an Italian composer known primarily for List of compositions by Giacomo Puccini#Operas, his operas. Regarded as the greatest and most successful proponent of Italian opera after Verdi, he ...
's ''
Madama 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 Lu ...
'', at the
Theatre Royal in
Sydney
Sydney is the capital city of the States and territories of Australia, state of New South Wales and the List of cities in Australia by population, most populous city in Australia. Located on Australia's east coast, the metropolis surrounds Syd ...
.
She made her
United States
The United States of America (USA), also known as the United States (U.S.) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It is a federal republic of 50 U.S. state, states and a federal capital district, Washington, D.C. The 48 ...
début at
Carnegie Hall
Carnegie Hall ( ) is a concert venue in Midtown Manhattan, New York City. It is at 881 Seventh Avenue (Manhattan), Seventh Avenue, occupying the east side of Seventh Avenue between 56th Street (Manhattan), 56th and 57th Street (Manhattan), 57t ...
in 1917.
Castles never married. She lived with her sister, Dolly Castles, in
Camberwell
Camberwell ( ) is an List of areas of London, area of South London, England, in the London Borough of Southwark, southeast of Charing Cross.
Camberwell was first a village associated with the church of St Giles' Church, Camberwell, St Giles ...
. She died at a hospital in
Fitzroy, Victoria
Fitzroy is an inner-city suburb in Melbourne, Victoria, Australia, northeast of the Melbourne central business district, located within the City of Yarra Local government areas of Victoria, local government area. Fitzroy recorded a population ...
, on 19 November 1951. She was buried in
Box Hill Cemetery.
Further reading
*''A New Melba?: The Tragedy of Amy Castles'',
Crossing Press (2006)
References
External links
*
{{DEFAULTSORT:Castles, Amy Eliza
1880 births
1951 deaths
Burials at Box Hill Cemetery
Australian operatic sopranos
Singers from Melbourne
20th-century Australian women opera singers