Music: Popular Pachyderm

Manhattan Composer Nicolai Berezowsky and Conductor Thomas Scherman once "sat down and agreed to three propositions : 1) besides Humperdinck's heavy-handed Hansel and Gretel, there are precious few operas acceptable to children; 2) Scherman's Little Orchestra Society is always ready & willing to tackle a new score; and 3) the adventures of a young and appealingly unsophisticated elephant named Babar* are bread & butter to large numbers of children and ex-children. With Mrs. Berezowsky they worked out sketches, got Dorothy (Porgy) Heyward to try her hand at a libretto. The result, after nearly two years: the premiere last week at Manhattan's...

Want the full story?

Subscribe Now

Subscribe
Subscribe

Learn more about the benefits of being a TIME subscriber

If you are already a subscriber sign up — registration is free!