Kathlyn Hilliard
A smiling white woman, standing on stage, wearing an 18th century-style costume, a wide pink dress with a white apron and cap
Kathlyn Hilliard in costume as Polly Peachum in The Beggar's Opera (1922)
Born17 April 1892
Glasgow, Scotland
DiedOctober 7, 1933 (age 41)
Worthing, Sussex, England
Other namesKathlyn Hill Baker
Occupation(s)Singer, actress
SpouseGeorge Baker

Kathlyn Hilliard (17 April 1892 – 7 October 1933) was a Scottish singer and actress. She was principal soprano with the British National Opera Company (BNOC) from 1925 to 1928.

Early life and education

Hilliard was born in Glasgow.[1]

Career

Hilliard appeared on the London stage in musical comedies, revues, and operas, including The Beggar's Opera (1922, 1925),[2] The Way of the World (1924), The Street Singer (1924), Riverside Nights (1926),[3] Parsifal (1927), Götterdämmerung (1927), The Pride of the Regiment (1932) and The Dubarry (1933).[4][5] She toured in Australia in 1922 and 1923.[6][7] She was principal soprano with the British National Opera Company from 1925 to 1928. Her appearances with the BNOC included parts in Coffee Cantata (1925), Pagliacci (1926), Hansel and Gretel (1926),[8] Romeo and Juliet (1926), The Tales of Hoffmann (1926), The Marriage of Figaro (1926, 1927), La bohème (1926, 1927), Carmen (1927), Faust (1928),[9] and La Vie Parisienne (1929).[10] In 1930 she was in a production of Lilac Time in Cardiff and Liverpool.[11] She fell ill while performing in a 1932 production of Noël Coward's Bitter Sweet in Liverpool.[12]

Hilliard made several recordings.[13][14] In 1926 she was a soloist at the Crystal Palace, for a concert of Handel opera choruses arranged by Sir Henry Wood.[15] She appeared in two short silent films, Lily of Killarney (1927) and Maritana (1927).[16] In 1932 she sang at the opening of a housing and furniture exhibition at Alsager,[17] and sang on radio broadcasts.[18]

Personal life

Hilliard married baritone George Baker in 1924.[19] They had a son, George Alan Hill Baker, born in 1925,[20] who died during the Second World War.[21] They owned a villa in Algiers in the 1920s.[22] She died in 1933, at the age of 41, in Worthing, Sussex.[1][6][23] Her collapse and early death were linked to "the Dubarry Jinx", as a series of actresses died or suffered other setbacks after appearing in that show, including her predecessor in the show, Anny Ahlers.[24][25]

References

  1. 1 2 "Singer and Actress; Death of Miss Kathlyn Hilliard". Liverpool Daily Post. 1933-10-10. p. 9. Retrieved 2023-09-11 – via Newspapers.com.
  2. ↑ "'The Turtle-Dove With Plaintive Crying'" The Sketch 117(March 15, 1922): 427.
  3. ↑ Chatterton, Julia (September 11, 1926). "Music, Song and Dance: Riverside Nights". The Musical Standard. 28: 79.
  4. ↑ Wearing, J. P. (2014-03-27). The London Stage 1920-1929: A Calendar of Productions, Performers, and Personnel. Rowman & Littlefield. pp. 34, 274, 309, 374, 431, 514–515. ISBN 978-0-8108-9302-3.
  5. ↑ Wearing, J. P. (2014-05-15). The London Stage 1930-1939: A Calendar of Productions, Performers, and Personnel. Rowman & Littlefield. pp. 199, 221. ISBN 978-0-8108-9304-7.
  6. 1 2 "Mss Kathlyn Hilliard". Courier-Mail. 1933-10-09. Retrieved 2023-09-11 – via Trove.
  7. ↑ "Kathlyn Hilliard Replaces Edith Drayson". The Sunday Times. 1922-12-10. p. 13. Retrieved 2023-09-11 – via Newspapers.com.
  8. ↑ "B.N.O.C. London Season". Musical News and Herald. 71: 566. December 25, 1926.
  9. ↑ "Kathlyn Hilliard | Opera Scotland". Opera Scotland. Retrieved 2023-09-11.
  10. ↑ "Pantomime and Vaudeville Fare for Holiday Week". Liverpool Echo. 1929-12-20. p. 14. Retrieved 2023-09-11 – via Newspapers.com.
  11. ↑ "Next Week's Amusements in Cardiff: Schubert's Delightful Music". Western Mail. 1930-09-06. p. 9. Retrieved 2023-09-11 – via Newspapers.com.
  12. ↑ Harlow, E. L. (1932-01-19). "Actress Who Took Her Chance; Part Learned in the Wings". Evening Express. p. 1. Retrieved 2023-09-11 – via Newspapers.com.
  13. ↑ "Kathlyn Hilliard". Discogs. Retrieved 2023-09-11.
  14. ↑ Laird, Ross (1996-11-25). Moanin' Low: A Discography of Female Popular Vocal Recordings, 1920-1933. Bloomsbury Publishing USA. p. 265. ISBN 978-0-313-37005-2.
  15. ↑ Chatterton, Julia (December 18, 1926). "The Crystal Palace Choral and Orchestral Society". The Musical Standard. 28: 201.
  16. ↑ Gifford, Denis (2018-10-24). The British Film Catalogue: The Fiction Film. Routledge. ISBN 978-1-317-83701-5.
  17. ↑ "Furnishing Exhibition at Alsager". Evening Sentinel. 1932-03-30. p. 6. Retrieved 2023-09-11 – via Newspapers.com.
  18. ↑ "Variety by Scottish Artists". Daily Mirror. 1932-11-29. p. 20. Retrieved 2023-09-11 – via Newspapers.com.
  19. ↑ "Polly and Macheath". Liverpool Echo. 1928-12-18. p. 6. Retrieved 2023-09-11 – via Newspapers.com.
  20. ↑ "George Baker (Baritone Vocalist)". The Gramophone. 4: 478. April 1927.
  21. ↑ "Second Lieutenant George Alan Hill Baker", Commonwealth War Graves Commission, accessed 11 September 2023
  22. ↑ "Algerian Villa, Actress's Retreat, Miss Kathlyn Hilliard". The Sun. 1922-08-02. p. 7. Retrieved 2023-09-11 – via Newspapers.com.
  23. ↑ "Music and Musicians: Public Rehearsals". Liverpool Daily Post. 1933-10-12. p. 4. Retrieved 2023-09-11 – via Newspapers.com.
  24. ↑ "3 More Actresses Victims of the 'DuBarry Jinx'". The San Francisco Examiner. 1934-01-21. p. 93. Retrieved 2023-09-11.
  25. ↑ "Miss Kathlyn Hilliard". The Guardian. 1933-10-09. p. 14. Retrieved 2023-09-11.
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