The singer must be ever on the alert for opportunities to advance. This
is largely a matter of preparation. If one is capable, the opportunities
usually come. I wonder if I may relate a little incident which occurred
to me in Germany long before the war. I had been singing in Berlin, when
the impresario of the Royal Opera approached me and asked me if I could
sing _Aida_ on a following Monday. I realized that if I admitted that I
had never sung _Aida_ before, the thoroughgoing, matter-of-fact German
Intendant would never even let me have a chance. Emmy Destinn was then
the prima donna at the Royal Opera, and had been taken ill. The post was
one of the operatic plums of all Europe. Before I knew it, I had said
"Yes, I can sing _Aida_." It was a white lie, and once told, I had to
live up to it. I had never sung _Aida_, and only knew part of it.
Running home I worked all night long to learn the last act. Over and
over the role hundreds and hundreds of times I went, until it seemed as
though my eyes would drop out of my head. Monday night came, and thanks
to my routine experience in smaller companies, I had learned _Aida_ so
that I was perfectly confident of it. Imagine the strain, however, when
I learned that the Kaiser and the court were to be present. At the end I
was called before the Kaiser, who, after warmly complimenting me, gave
me the greatly coveted post in his opera house. I do not believe that he
ever found out that the little Toronto girl had actually fibbed her way
into an opportunity.