[78-L] Anne Brown, Gershwin's "Bess" passes at 96

[soundthink at aol.com]

Anne Brown, George Gershwin's original "Bess" in "Porgy and Bess," died in Norway recently at the age of 96. Brown was the last surviving cast member from the original 1935 Broadway production. I wrote about Brown in a new songbook edition of "Porgy" that I published with Alfred Music Publishing. She was a 23-year-old Juilliard student when she auditioned for the show, initially just trying to land any part in the opera. In her audition with Gershwin, she was asked by the composer to sing a spiritual. In the beginning, she was wary of Gershwin's motives, fearing that she was being placed in a stereotypical "darkie" role, but when he convinced her otherwise and told her?the story, she was intrigued and?sang "City Called Heaven" for him. She not only was hired, she was selected to play the lead role of Bess. 

Obituaries for Brown will have you believe that Gershwin changed the name of the opera from "Porgy" (after DuBose Heyward's original 1926 novel) to "Porgy and Bess' to give Brown title billing, but this was not the case. Theatre Guild asked Gershwin to come up with a new title for the show and it was Heyward himself who recommended "Porgy and Bess," noting similar dual character titles in operas such as "Samson and Delilah," "Tristan und Isolde," and "Pelleas and Melisande." Gershwin, flattered to be in such stellar company, agreed to the new title. 

Although "Porgy and Bess" did not have an original cast recording, Decca did include Brown and co-star Todd Duncan ("Porgy") in the 1940 revival, which was issued in two parts: on a 4-disc 12" 78 rpm album and then again in the 1942 revival by Cheryl Crawford, this time issued on 3 10" 78s.

Cary Ginell