Dramatist, politician, entrepreneur andrevolutionary (or traitor), Richard Brinsley Sheridan was a man of manycontradictions: an English-educatedProtestant actor who cared about thecivil rights of the Irish Catholic peas-antry; a playwright who was best knownas a politician; a true believer in sincerityyet a role-playing chameleon; a radicalmember of Parliament who associatedwith armed insurrectionists against theCrown.Sheridan was born in 1751 in Dublin, Ireland. His mother, Frances, was aplaywright and novelist. Two of her playswere produced in London in the early1760s, though she is best known for hernovel THE MEMOIRS OF SIDNEY BIDDULPH (1761). His father, Thomas,was an actor-manager at the SmockAlley Theatre, but when the familymoved to England in 1758, he gave upacting and wrote a number of booksabout education and the standardizationof the English language. At the age of 11 Richard was sent toHarrow School, gaining "the esteem andeven admiration of all his schoolfellowsand acquiring more learning than he isusually given credit for,” according to hisschool master. He left Harrow at the ageof 17 and was placed under the care of atutor. He was also trained by his father indaily elocution, put through a course ofEnglish reading and took fencing andriding lessons.In the seven years between his leavingHarrow and the appearance of THE RIVALS, he produced plays, poems, political letters and pamphlets. The family moved to Bath in 1770 where hemet the daughters of composer ThomasLinley. The eldest daughter, ElizabethAnn, a girl of 16, was exceedingly beau-tiful and had many suitors, includingSheridan. Sheridan fought two duels to defend herhonor, which created a considerablesensation at the time. Both were againstCaptain Thomas Mathews, who had writ-ten a newspaper article defaming Eliza-beth’s character. The first duel was shortand bloodless. According to Sheridan,Matthews was forced to beg for his lifeand sign a retraction of the article. Theapology was made public and Mathews,

infuriated by the publicity, refused to accept his defeat and challenged Sheri-dan to another duel. This time both menwere wounded, Sheridan seriously. Fortunately his remarkable constitutionpulled him through, and eight days afterthis bloody affair he was pronounced outof danger. Sheridan was just 21 years-old when hemarried Elizabeth in 1773.They set uphouse in London on a lavish scale withlittle money and no immediate prospectsother than his wife's dowry. The youngcouple entered the fashionable world ofthe time and apparently held up theirend in entertaining.Once they settled in London, Sheridanbegan writing for the stage. Less thantwo years later, in 1775, his first play,THE RIVALS, was produced at London'sCovent Garden Theatre. It was a failureon its first night. Sheridan cast a morecapable actor in the role of the comicIrishman for the second performance,and it was a smash, immediately estab-lishing the young playwright's reputationand earning him the favor of high societyLondon.THE RIVALS has gone on to become a standard of English literature.Shortly after the success of THE RIVALS,Sheridan and his father-in-law ThomasLinley, a successful composer, produced

Audience Guide

AUDIENCE GUIDEResearch/Writing by Justine Leonard

for ENLIGHTEN,Skylight Opera Theatre’s Education ProgramEdited by Ray Jivoff414-299-4965

rayj@skylightopera.comwww.skylightopera.com

Music & Libretto by

Kirke MechemBased on the play

by Richard Brinsley Sheridan

THE RIVALS is made possible, in part,through generous support from Mary Ann & Lloyd Gerlach

and

Enlighten is funded in part by the Potawatomi BingoCasino Miracle on Canal Street Program.

Richard Brinsley Sheridan: Playwright, Poet, Politician

Richard Brinsley Sheridan (1751-1816)

the opera, THE DUENNA. This piece wasaccorded such a warm reception that itplayed for 75 performances.In 1776, Sheridan, his father-in-law, andanother partner, bought half interest inthe Drury Lane Theatre and two yearslater, bought out the other half. Sheridanwas the manager of the theater for manyyears and later became sole owner.His most famous play, THE SCHOOLFOR SCANDAL (1777) is considered oneof the greatest English comedies ofmanners. It was followed by THE CRITIC(1779), which was produced this seasonby the American Players Theatre inSpring Green, Wisconsin.As owner of the Drury Lane, his laterplays were all produced there. In 1778Sheridan wrote THE CAMP, which com-mented on the ongoing threat of aFrench invasion of Britain. On February24, 1809 (despite the much vaunted firesafety precautions of 1794) the theatreburned down. Found drinking a glass ofwine in the street while watching the fire,Sheridan was famously reported to havesaid, "A man may surely be allowed totake a glass of wine by his own fireside."In 1776 Sheridan abandoned his writingin favor of a political career when he metCharles Fox, the leader of the RadicalWhigs in the House of Commons. As amember of Parliament, he was a frequent speaker in the House of Commons and soon earned a reputationas one of the best orators in Britain. Sheridan strongly supported the Ameri-can colonists. Congress was so grateful for Sheridan's support that he was offered a reward of £20,000. Under attack for disloyalty to his country, Sheridan decided not to accept the gift. In 1794 Sheridan defended the French

Revolution against its critics in theHouse of Commons. He believed thatthe French people had the right to deter-mine their own form of government with-out outside interference. Sheridan wasalso a strong supporter of an uncen-sored press and argued strenuouslyagainst attempts to use the libel laws toprevent criticism of the government. During the next few years he was in andout of office and had serious financialproblems. In 1813 he was arrested for debt, but was released when a wealthyfriend bailed him out. Sheridan died impoverished on July 7,1816. He was held in great esteem byhis contemporaries and was buried inthe Poet’s Corner in Westminster Abbey.

Sources: A Traitor’s Kiss, The Life of RichardBrinsley Sheridan by Fintan O’Toole andWikipedia.com

The Rivals

The Works of Sheridan• THE RIVALS (1775)• ST. PATRICK'S DAY (1775)• THE DUENNA (1775)• A TRIP TO SCARBOROUGH (1777)• THE SCHOOL FOR SCANDAL (1777)• THE CAMP (1778)• THE CRITIC (1779)• THE GLORIOUS FIRST OF JUNE (1794)• PIZARRO (1799)He also wrote poetry and political speechesfor his time in Parliament.

Mrs. Malaprop’s Way with WordsMrs. Malaprop, Sheridan’s delightfulcharacter in THE RIVALS, had a waywith words, the wrong way. Her nameis derived from the French malàpropos,meaning inappropriate. A malapropismis a sentence in which one word hasbeen used incorrectly in place of an-other. These slips can be divided intotwo types: classical malapropisms, inwhich the mistakes are due to igno-rance (as in the case of Mrs. Mala-prop), and temporary slips of thetongue, in which the intended word isknown by the speaker, but has been in-advertently replaced by another. Mrs.Malaprop often substitutes a similar-sounding word for the word that sheactually intends, with hilarious results.Real or written malapropisms can beheard everywhere. An example is YogiBerra's statement: "Texas has a lot ofelectrical votes." (electoral). ArchieBunker from the TV sitcom ALL IN THEFAMILY was known for malapropismsof words and names: “The hookeriesand massageries...the whole world isturning into a regular Sodom andGlocca Morra." (Gomorrah). Politicians are famous for their verbalgaffes: Former President George W.Bush: "Anyone engaging in illegal financial transactions will be caughtand persecuted." Vice President DanQuale: "Republicans understand theimportance of bondage between amother and child."Here are a few of Mrs. Malaprop’s classic lines: •"...you must illiterate this man fromyour memory." [obliterate]•“Oh, Captain, flatulence will get younowhere.” (flattery) •”...I apologize for any incontinence.”(incompetence)•“The girl is as headstrong as an allegory on the banks on the banks ofthe Nile.” (alligator) •“I don’t know all the perpendiculars.”(particulars) •"Bavarians at the gates!” (barbarians) We won’t spoil your fun. Listen andyou’ll enjoy more of Mrs. Malaprop’sbon mots in Kirke Mechem’s THE RIVALS.

Mrs. Malaprop

Kirke Mechem is one of America’s mostprolific composers. Although he is oftencalled the Dean of Choral Composition,his musical portfolio includes more than250 works in almost every genre. In2002, ASCAP registered performancesof his music in 42 countries. His firstopera, TARTUFFE, with nearly 400 performances in six countries, has become one of the most popular operaswritten by an American. TARTUFFE wasone of the highlights of Skylight’s 2006-2007 season.Mechem was born in Kansas in 1925.His father was director of the KansasState Historical Society and wrote novels, plays and poetry. His mother wasa German-trained concert pianist. "As achild I often went to sleep listening to mymother practice the piano. She played atleast one recital every year and we understood that these were importantevents. She was a devout Presbyterian,my father an atheist, and they respectedeach other's beliefs unreservedly. Thecommon spiritual force in our family wasmusic,” he recalled. Mechem began studying piano with hismother at an early age but was more interested in sports. He played popularmusic by ear and at age 17 began writ-ing what he describes as "stacks ofwretched songs." During World War II,he served two and half years in thearmy, then enrolled at Stanford Univer-sity as an English major, intending to follow in his father's footsteps as a writer.Out of curiosity he took a harmony

course and at the end of his junior yearhe changed his major to music. Heearned a masters degree at Harvard in1953, and was winner of the Boott Prizefor vocal composition. He conductedand taught at Stanford, and served ascomposer-in-residence for several yearsat the University of San Francisco andhas taught at many other universities asa guest composer and conductor.Mechem also lived in Europe, spendingthree years in Vienna where he beganwriting chamber music. Most of Mechem's early work was forchorus. Some of these pieces, com-posed as an undergraduate and gradu-ate student, were published and havebecome staples of the choral literature,including Make A Joyful Noise and GiveThanks Unto The Lord. The latter wonthe tri-annual SAI American Music Awardand helped thrust Mechem's choral workinto prominence. His first major orches-tral success was the 1965 San Fran-cisco Symphony premiere of hisSymphony No. 1 under conductor JosefKrips, who called the work "one of theworld's great pieces of music." In the 1970s he saw a performance ofMolière's classic satire, TARTUFFE,which inspired him to write his firstopera. He wrote his own libretto, as hedoes for all his operas. Premiered in1980 by the San Francisco Opera,TARTUFFE was an immediate hit andhas since played to audiences inCanada, China, Russia, Austria and Germany, as well as in the USA. In 1990, Mechem made his first of threetrips to the Soviet Union. He was a guestof honor at the Tchaikovsky InternationalCompetition in Moscow, and was invitedback for an "enormously successful" all-Mechem symphonic concert by theUSSR Radio-Television Orchestra inMarch, 1991—the first time a Soviet or-chestra had devoted an entire concert toa living American composer. Five yearslater he attended the Russian premiereof TARTUFFE in St. Petersburg. The success of TARTUFFE encouragedMechem to embark upon his most ambi-tious work, an opera based on the life ofthe controversial abolitionist, JohnBrown. The premiere of JOHN BROWNtook place in 2008, when Lyric OperaKansas City scored what the Kansas

City Star described as "the sort of magical success that composers andmusicians dream of." Since JOHN BROWN’S premiere,Mechem has written many other compo-sitions, including THE RIVALS and PRIDEAND PREJUDICE, based on JaneAusten's novel. THE RIVALS is receivingits professional premiere at the Skylight."We composers are speaking a very oldlanguage.” Mechem said ’The new waysin which we speak must be understoodby our contemporaries. Otherwise, weare simply spinning our wheels, andmusic becomes just another plaything, ahobby, an elitist way of putting down theuninitiated. I prefer it to be the magnifi-cent source of joy, consolation, beauty,ingenuity and inspiration that it has beenfor generations..." Mechem has been recognized for hiscontributions by the United Nations, theNational Endowment for the Arts, theNational Gallery, the American ChoralDirectors Association and the Music Educators National Conference. In 1998,he was presented with a lifetimeachievement award from the NationalOpera Association.Kirke Mechem lives and works in SanFrancisco. He will be in Milwaukee forthe opening weekend of THE RIVALS.

The RivalsKirke Mechem: Composer of THE RIVALS and TARTUFFE

Ad from the 2006-2007 Skylight season

Kirke Mechem

The action takes place during one day inNewport, Rhode Island about 1900.CharactersLydia Larkspur, a young heiressMrs. Malaprop, her aunt and guardianJulia, Lydia’s cousinLucy, Mrs Malaprop’s maidJack Absolute, in love with LydiaNicholas Astor, Jack’s friendSir Anthony Absolute, Jack’s fatherJasper Vanderbilt, Lydia’s suitorBaron Von Hakenbock, a Prussian fortune hunterAct 1Scene 1: Mrs. Malaprop’s SalonThe opera begins with an argument between Lydia and Mrs. Malaprop, whoplans to marry off her niece to a richsuitor, Jasper Vanderbilt, a country boorand son of the Kentucky branch of thewealthy Vanderbilts. Mrs. Malaprop, infamous for twisting the English language sings,“You’ll conjugate the man I say: Jasper Vanderbilt! He’s effluent as a Marquise,Newport’s choicest plum.” But Lydia is in love with a romantic fantasy and wants to live in “charmingpoverty.” Mrs. Malaprop is upset whenLydia insists, “I’d rather marry a kangaroo than any man that pleases you.”

Lydia laments her situation with hercousin Julia, who knows about Lydia’ssecret plans to elope with Waverley, apenniless opera composer. Julia thenshares her own romantic woes about herwealthy, but melancholy fiancé, NicholasAstor. The girls discuss Mrs. Malaprop, whounder the pseudonym Celia, has beencarrying on a secret correspondencewith Baron von Hakenbock, a bellicosePrussian fortune hunter. The Baron believes that “Celia” is actually the muchyounger Lydia. In the Salon, Mrs. Malaprop and Sir Anthony Absolute meet to discussLydia’s future. Mrs. Malaprop shares herrules for the education of a girl of quality, “First, no meddling with Latin or Greek; These are linguistics that dead people speak.Foreigners, Sir, beneath our station.Geometry’s one of my recommendations;A girl must know the contagious nations…”Mrs. Malaprop and Sir Anthony decidethat Lydia should marry Sir Anthony’sson Jack.Mrs. Malaprop calls for her maid Lucy todeliver a letter to Baron von Hakenbock.Lucy profits from this correspondenceand from Mrs. Malaprop’s belief that sheis “simple.” Lucy sings, “A stupid stare and bended knee. Simplicity, I guarantee will make a millionaire of me! From the Baron I take notes to the old lady; he’s a shady one and very hard to fleece. But I know just how to sell him: I just tell him that his secret lover, Celia is the niece.”Scene 2: The Newport CasinoJack’s gloomy friend Nicholas Astorloves Julia, but his fear of being lovedsolely for his money drives him furtherinto despair. Jack reveals to Nicholasthat he has been wooing Lydia in dis-guise as “Waverly,” and worries that he’lllose Lydia if he reveals his true identityand his wealth. Jack introduces Nick to Jasper Vander-bilt, who is frustrated in his pursuit ofLydia because of her affection for “thisdamn Waverley guy,” (in reality, Jack).Sir Anthony insists that Jack marry thegirl he chooses without question.

“Do exactly as I say! I’ll give you till 5 o’clock today to come around. If you don’t, you’ll never see another pound! And damn me if I ever call you son again!”The servant girl/messenger Lucy revealsto Jack that his father wants him tomarry Lydia, and that he is in fact, hisown rival for Lydia’s hand. Jack finds hisfather and agrees to the marriage.Scene 3: Mrs Malaprop’s SalonNicholas accuses Julia of flirting withJasper Vanderbilt. Julia leaves the roomin tears, followed by a determinedNicholas. Jack fools Mrs. Malaprop intohelping him elope with Lydia. He tellsLydia, who thinks he is Waverly, “I fooled your aunt with this uniform;She thinks I’m Captain Absolute.I heard that he was coming here, So I got some friends to keep him away.”Lydia is thrilled and asks, “Waverly, will you really forsake my fortune, my dowry, everything for me?”Jack/Waverly responds, “Your love will make me rich in poverty!”The first act ends with both Lydia andMrs. Malaprop thinking they have suc-ceeded in their plans. Jack is happy tobe closer to marrying Lydia but worries, “There was never so clever a counterfeit! But how will I ever get out of it?”

The RivalsSynopsis (Costume designs by Brian Hemesath)

Baron Von Hockenback Anthony Absolute

Act TwoScene 1: The CasinoBaron Von Hakenbock meets Jasper inthe café. Fearful of meeting his beautifulyoung Celia in person, the Baron warnsJasper against loving a beautiful woman:“If you’re wise, I advise you, study this well:a beautiful wife is a sentence to Hell.They ruin your sleep, and they never come cheap.”Jasper bemoans his bad luck with Lydia,who has rejected him for Waverly. “I ride all the way from Kentucky,They ask me to come to her place;I dress up swell,I ring the bell,They slam the door in my face!”The Baron insists Jasper get satisfactionby challenging Waverly to a duel. Jasperwrites his challenge, then asks Jack todeliver it-to himself! Scene 2: Mrs. Malaprop’s SalonMrs. Malaprop puts the final touches onthe Salon’s décor in anticipation of another visit from Jack, this time accom-panied by his father, Sir Anthony.

When they arrive, Lydia is crushed whenshe realizes that Jack Absolute has beenpretending to be Waverly, the povertystricken composer,“My dream is dashed!Romance in pieces!He’s rich as Croesus!”Mrs. Malaprop and Sir Anthony leave theyoung couple to sort it out. Lydia accuses Jack,“You don’t compare to Waverly!A millionaire in pauper’s clothes!You’re no composer, you’re absurd!You’ve insulted and deceived me!You lied to me, enchanted me!”While Jack tries to appease her,“You’re not being fair now, Lydia!Oh, you and your romantic pose!But you’re the one who broke your word!If you loved me you’d believe me!I tried to be your fantasy!”The scene ends with Jack angrily leav-ing, slamming the door behind him.Scene 3: Men’s Club Boxing RingThe Baron challenges Jack to a duel.Jack and Nicholas meet and realize bothhave been rejected by the women theylove. Nicholas decides that the final testof Julia’s love would be a duel.Scene 4: Mrs Malaprop’s SalonNicholas arrives to say goodbye to Julia,fabricating a story that he has lost hisfortune and will have to leave town orfight a duel he’s sure to lose. He sings,“I’ve lost my whole estate, and now the scoundrels want my head.Unless I leave the country nowYour Nick’s as good as dead!”Julia replies,“And what happens if you stay?”And Nicholas responds, “I’ll have to fight a duelAgainst a man so cruel,He murders a dozen men every day.”Julia valiantly resolves to leave with him,despite his “impoverished state.” Whenhe smugly tells Julia that she haspassed the ultimate test, she pushes himout the door.Scene 4 Julia’s RoomLydia and Julia mourn the loss of their romantic dreams. Lydia sings,“Goodbye to the garret in Paris

to fall in romantic Rome,where no one would stare at the heiress.We’d starve in our poor little home.”Mrs. Malaprop enters, followed by SirAnthony and Lucy, saying,“Murder! Slaughter! Swords and shields!The men are fighting duets in the fields!”They run out to stop the duels.Scene 5: A tennis court at the CasinoThe Baron is instructing Jasper in swordfighting in preparation for Jasper’s duelwith Waverly. Jasper’s gains couragewith every thrust. Jack and Nicholasenter and much confusion ensues. TheBaron draws on Jack; Nicholas withJasper. Nicholas encourages Jasper tokill him; the latter shows a mixture ofbravado, fear, confusion and unwilling-ness to injure Nicholas. Suddenly the fighting is interrupted byLydia, Julia, Mrs. Malaprop and Sir Anthony. Lydia runs to Jack, Mrs. Malaprop to the Baron, Julia to Nicholas.Mrs. Malaprop reveals that she is Celia,the Baron’s secret romance. All three couples reconcile and plan for a triplewedding.

The Rivals

Jasper Vanderbilt Lydia Larkspur

Sheridan’s play THE RIVALS is set inBath, England in the 18th century, atown legendary for conspicuous con-sumption and fashion. In creating hisopera, Kirke Mechem has moved thesetting to 20th century Newport, RhodeIsland, known as a summer resort fa-mous for the Newport Mansions.Snobby, nouveau riche, often stuffy,Newport in 1900 is the perfect venue forthis new version of THE RIVALS.Since its founding by English settlers in1639, Newport grew to be one of colo-nial America’s five leading seaports. Butafter the occupation by the British andlater the Revolutionary War, the city’seconomy was left in shambles. By-passed by industrialization and with alandscape frozen in time, the city faced ableak future. But beginning in the mid-nineteenth century, its location became an assetand Newport re-invented itself as a popular summer resort. In 1900, thecountry was bursting with energy andnew found fortunes and wealthy Ameri-can seeking to escape the heat began tobuild summer ”cottages” in Newport. InNewport, society was everything.Wealthy families gathered there in their70 room “cottages”. Important names included the Vanderbilts, Astors, Whitneys, along with fortune hunters,who made it their summer playground.

To the dismay of the refined, old families,just having money was enough to elevate a family to a place in high soci-ety. The establishment began losing social prominence to the nouveau riche.These provincial millionaires spent theirmoney competitively, to impress andoutdo one another. They paid millions forhuge mansions, yachts and even to“buy” indigent noblemen to wed theirdaughters. They found many eager candidates among Europe’s impover-ished nobility.

These young women were called the“Dollar Princesses.” The Vanderbilts, likemany American millionaires, wanted anobleman for their daughter, Consuelo,one of the wealthiest heiresses in theworld. When her brother Harold heardthe news, he blurted out, “He is onlymarrying you for your money!” Hermother locked her in her room until sheagreed to marry the unappealing suitor.It is said that at the wedding ceremony,the 60 piece orchestra barely drownedout the sobs of the distraught bride. Itwas an unhappy marriage from the verystart, but eventually Consuelo freed her-self of it, and went on to find meaning inher life as a political activist and suffra-gette. She found true love with a less ex-alted, but more simpatico companion.In defining the rationale behind the social classes trying to outdo one another, economist Thorsten Veblen, in1899, coined the term "conspicuous consumption." It was the subject of a

1907 article in The Cosmopolitan maga-zine: “Newport is the most expensive cityin the world.’ declared a friend who spent$8,000 a season to rent his cottage. ‘Afashionable family will easily spend a$1,000 a month on flowers for small dinners.’ I asked what it costs one ofthese ladies for her gowns.‘ $10,000 ayear,’ she answered promptly. ‘If awoman spends only $5,000 a year, wedo not take her very seriously.”Today, many mansions continue in pri-vate use, others are open to tourists asmuseums and have become Newport’sbiggest tourist attraction. Although notone of the older mansions, one of themost popular attractions is Hammer-smith Farm, site of the wedding recep-tion of John F. Kennedy and JacquelineBouvier after their marriage in Newportin 1953.While the mansions still are a solidtourist anchor, Newport continues toreinvent itself. The city became a yacht-ing capital when the New York YachtClub brought the famed America’s Cupto Newport in the 1930s, where it stayeduntil it was moved to the Australiain1983. The Newport Jazz and Folk Festivals and the Newport Music Festival were created as major eventsand have been successful in drawingthousands to Newport each summer.Fancy, frivolous, fabulous and alwayschanging, the characters in KirkeMechem’s THE RIVALS would haveloved Newport.

The RivalsNewport: The City by the Sea

Occupation Yearly SalaryParisian chef 5,000Second chef 1,200Private secretary to the lady 3,000Private tutor 2,000Governess 1,000Two nurses 1,000Housekeeper 1,000Five maids 1,200Head coachman 1,200Second and third coachman 1,200Chauffeur 1,000Butler 900Second butler 600Head gardener 1,000Four helpers 2,500

Total $23,800

A Gibson cartoon lampooning the “Dollar Princesses”: the heiress bound by hermother’s will, the small nobleman and the preacher blind to the travesty.

The Widener Estate in Newport, R.I.

The stunning costumes for Skylight’sproduction of THE RIVALS were createdby New York costume designer BrianHemesath and “built” in-house by theSkylight’s costume department. Heme-sath drew his inspiration for THE RIVALScostumes from Charles Dana Gibson,whose work is featured in this guide andis on display in the lobby. Gibson accu-rately documented and satirized thelifestyle of society in his day.

From 1890 until the World War I (1914-1918), American women between 15 and30 yearned to be like the women in theink drawings of Charles Dana Gibson.The Gibson Girl was tall and stately, su-perbly dressed, artful but never wickedand first appeared in Life Magazine in1890. Overnight, her image became themodel for a generation.“Before Gibson synthesized his idealwoman, the American girl was vagueand nondescript,” wrote a reporter in theNew York World. “As soon as the worldsaw Gibson’s ideal it bowed down inadoration of “the typical American girl.”The fame of the Gibson Girl made Gibson respected and wealthy. The popularity of his pen-and-ink ladies astonished Gibson, who regarded him-self as a social and political satirist, not astyle-setter for women. “If I hadn’t seen itin the papers,” he said, “I should neverhave known that there was such a thingas a Gibson Girl.”Gibson used his waspish wit combinedwith his talent for drawing unsurpassablegirls, to poke fun at the foibles of society-in book illustrations, cartoons and serial-ized picture stories that the artistcaptioned himself.

Charles Dana Gibson (1867–1944) was an American graphic artist, bestknown for his iconic representation ofthe beautiful and independent Americanwoman at the turn of the 20th century.Gibson was born in Roxbury, Massachu-setts, the great-grandson of US SenatorJames DeWolf and the great-great-grandson of US Senator William Brad-ford. He studied at the New York ArtStudents League for two years.Peddling his pen-and-ink sketches, hesold his first work in 1886 to Life. Hisworks appeared weekly in the magazinefor over 30 years. He quickly built awider reputation, his works appearing inall the major New York publications in-cluding Harper's Weekly, Scribners andCollier's.In 1895, he married Irene Langhorne,from Danville, Virginia, a sister of NancyAstor, the first woman to serve as aMember of Parliament in the BritishHouse of Commons. The elegant Lang-horne sisters, born to a once-wealthyVirginia family devastated by the CivilWar, served as the inspiration for the famous Gibson Girls.He became the editor and eventualowner of Life in 1918. The popularity ofthe Gibson Girl faded after World War I.He retired in 1936, the same year Scribner's published, PORTRAIT OF ANERA AS DRAWN BY C.D. GIBSON: A BIOGRAPHY by Fairfax Downey.

The RivalsThe Gibson Girl

The Proper EducationDaughter:We no sooner learn a little about one subject, Mamma, than we stop and turn to another.Mother: You must remember, dear, that I am fitting you to enter society.

Kirke Mechem had an era, its feel and itspeople in mind when he created hisopera THE RIVALS. The typically Ameri-can, rambuctious spunk in the characterof Lydia Larkspur reflects the historic unruliness of one of the most famousAmericans of the time, Alice RooseveltLongworth. She was the oldest child ofTheodore Roosevelt, the 26th Presidentof the United States. Alice was the onlychild of Roosevelt and his first wife,Alice Hathaway Lee.Alice led an unconventional and contro-versial life. Her marriage to Representa-tive Nicholas Longworth (Republican-Ohio),43rd Speaker of the US House of Repre-sentatives, was shaky, and the couple'sonly child was a result of her affair withSenator William Borah of Idaho. She was born in 1884 in New York City.Her mother Alice, was a Boston bankingheiress. Two days after Alice’s birth, hermother died of undiagnosed Bright's disease. On the same day, her grand-mother, Martha Bulloch Roosevelt, diedof typhoid fever.Her father was so distraught by his wife'sdeath that he never spoke of her again,would not allow her to be mentioned inhis presence and omitted her name fromhis autobiography. He retreated from hislife in New York and spent two years onhis ranch in North Dakota. He left his infant daughter in the care of his sister,Anna Bamie Roosevelt.

In 1886, Theodore married a childhoodfriend, Edith Kermit Carow. He and Edithwould have five children and be marrieduntil his death in 1919. Alice matured into young womanhoodand became known as a great beautylike her mother. However, continuing ten-sion with her stepmother and prolongedseparation and little attention from herfather created a young woman who wasas independent and outgoing as shewas self-confident and calculating. When her father, then Vice President,took office following the assassination ofPresident William McKinley in Buffalo in1901, Alice became an instant celebrityand fashion icon. She was known as arule-breaker in an era when womenwere under great pressure to conform.She smoked in public, rode in cars withmen, stayed out late partying and placedbets with a bookie.In 1905, Alice, along with the Secretaryof War, William Howard Taft, led the so-called "Imperial Cruise" to Japan,Hawaii, China, the Philippines andKorea. She made headlines wherevershe went, being photographed with theEmperor of Japan and the Empress ofChina and jumped into the ship's poolfully clothed. Her marriage to NicholasLongworth in 1906 was the social eventof the season. When the Roosevelt family moved out ofthe White House, Alice buried a Voodoodoll of the new First Lady, Nellie Taft, inthe front yard. Later, the Taft WhiteHouse banned her from her former resi-dence, the first but not the last adminis-tration to do so. During WoodrowWilson's administration she was bannedin 1916 for a bawdy joke at Wilson's ex-pense and her society dinners and lob-bying helped to derail US membership inthe League of Nations.Following the death of her husband in1931, she and her daughter continued tolive near Dupont Circle on Washington'sEmbassy Row. She maintained herstature socially and politically, garneringher the nickname "the other WashingtonMonument". During the Great Depression, when she,like so many other Americans, found herfortunes reversed, Longworth appearedin tobacco advertisements to raisemoney. She published an autobiography,

CROWDED HOURS. The book sold welland received rave reviews. Time Maga-zine praised its "insouciant vitality."Alice, a lifelong Republican, changed herpolitical sympathies when she becameclose to the Kennedy family and LyndonJohnson. But after Robert Kennedy wasmurdered in 1968, she supported herfriend Richard Nixon. Her long friendship with Nixon ended atthe conclusion of the Watergate Scan-dal, when Nixon quoted her father's diaryat his resignation, saying, "Only if you'vebeen to the lowest valley can you knowhow great it is to be on the highestmountain top." This infuriated Longworthas he compared his departure from theWhite House in disgrace to her father'sloss of his wife and mother on the sameday. Nixon, however, called her "themost interesting conversationalist of theage" and said, "No one, no matter howfamous, could ever outshine her." Alice's wit was legendary. Her most fa-mous quotation found its way to a pillowon her settee: "If you haven't got any-thing good to say about anybody, comesit next to me."After many years of ill health, Alice diedin her Embassy Row home in 1980 atthe age of 96.

The RivalsThe “Historic Unruliness” of Alice Longworth Roosevelt

1906 postcard associated with her wedding

Alice Lee Roosevelt Longworth(1884–1980)