Chester Ludgin
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Chester Ludgin (born May 20, 1925–died August 9, 2003) was a native of Brooklyn, New York. The baritone made his professional debut with The Experimental Opera Theatre of America (affiliated with the New Orleans Opera Association), as Baron Scarpia in Tosca, conducted by Renato Cellini and directed by Armando Agnini. The very next year, he first appeared with the New York City Opera, as Dr Falke in Die Fledermaus, opposite Phyllis Curtin.
With the City Opera, Ludgin was heard in many roles, including what was perhaps his greatest success, John Proctor in the world premiere of Ward's The Crucible (1961, with Norman Treigle as the Reverend John Hale). He was also in the premieres of Kurka's The Good Soldier Schweik (1958) and Ellstein's The Golem (1962) for that company. He was applauded there, as well, for his portrayal of Horace Tabor in The Ballad of Baby Doe.
Ludgin was also a favorite at the San Francisco Opera, in Rigoletto, Otello, Aïda, Boris Godounov, Lohengrin, Tristan und Isolde, La fanciulla del West, Lady Macbeth of Mtsensk (with Anja Silja), and the world premiere of Imbrie's Angle of Repose. In 1983, the singing-actor capped his career with the last of his twelve world-premieres, as Old Sam in Bernstein's A Quiet Place (1983). The production was seen in Houston, Milan (Teatro alla Scala), Washington DC and Vienna, where the composer conducted his work (and when it was televised). In 2003, the beloved baritone succumbed to cancer, in New York City.
[edit] Selected Discography
- Weisgall: The Tenor (Cassilly; Grossman, 1958) CRI
- Ward: The Crucible (Brooks, Bible, Macurdy; Buckley, 1962) CRI
- Bernstein: A Quiet Place (Uppman; Bernstein, 1986) [live] Deutsche Grammophon
[edit] Videography
- Menotti: The Consul (Neway; Torkanowsky, Dalrymple, 1960) VAI
[edit] References
- "Obituaries," Opera News, November 2003.
