The extraordinary operatic adventures of Blanche Arral

by Blanche Arral

"The memoir of opera singer Blanche Arral is the international adventure tale of a lifetime, complete with intrepid heroine whom readers will love for her exuberant temperament and irresistible charm. Born in Belgium as Clara Lardinois, the youngest of seventeen children, Arral was destined for a life wilder than fiction. She began her career at the Opera-Comique in Paris, where Massenet added a small part to Manon for her, but her love for adventure soon led her to perform around the world. During her travels Arral became acquainted with such legendary figures of her time as Sarah Bernhardt, Mata Hari, Franz Liszt, Victor Hugo, Harry Houdini, Camille Saint-Saens, and Jack London, who based a character on her in his book Smoke Bellew. In Russia she met Rasputin, and in Turkey, the sultan Abdulhamid II - just before narrowly escaping a harem. She describes her recording sessions with Thomas Edison and her run-ins with the difficult Nellie Melba. Wherever Blanche Arral went, excitement a