Koninklijke Opera Gent - Cornelis, A.
Malvina (Vina) Johanna Pauline Felicita Bovy (1900-1983) was a Belgian soprano who was internationally active during the interwar period. In 1947, Vina Bovy was appointed director of the Royal Opera of Ghent. At the same time, she continued to sing in Ghent, still adding new roles to her repertoire. As director, Bovy programmed many Italian works but also included Belgian composers such as Jan Blockx (De Bruid der Zee), Emile Wambach (Quinten Massys) and August De Boeck (La Route d'Emeraude). She quit as director of the Ghent opera at the end of 1955 and continued to perform sporadically afterwards. Her very last performance took place on 23 August 1964 at the Casino-Kursaal in Ostend.
Photoalbum compiled by A. Cornelis, who used to be the neighbour of Vina Bovy, containing portraits and scenes from the productions of the Royal Opera of Ghent during Bovy's time as a director (Lohengrin, Guillaume Tell, Mignon, Madame Butterfly, Louise, Hoffmann's vertellingen, Othello, Création de Maya, Tristan & Isolde, Messaline, Carmen, La Traviata, Thaïs, Shylock, Manon, Paillasse, Cavalleria Rusticana, l'Aiglon, Martha, Werther, Romeo & Juliette, Le Chemineau, Lakmé, Aïda, Rigoletto, La Tosca & Faust). Some pictures are autographed and/or have a dedication. Accompanied by a program booklet (in French and Dutch) of the season 1949-1950. Also containing some loose pictures in the back, mostly portraits from around 1928, dedicated to Charles Cornelis.
Ex libris A. Cornelis (manuscript)
Keywords: Bovy, Vina -- 1900-1983; Opera Ballet Vlaanderen (Ghent and Antwerp, Belgium); 20th Century (1901-2000); Opera; Iconography; Photography; Staging; Singer; Music history; Ghent (Belgium)