FROM THE SLUMS

Rotorua Morning Post, Volume 2, Issue 417, 29 December 1932, Page 2

FROM THE SLUMS

ROMANCE OF A CINIJERELLA A Cinderella girl who eked out a living .selling pennyworths of sweets to New York slum children has risen to be an opera star at the salary of £200 a night. She is pretty Serafina Di Neo, who at the age of 19 made a truimphant debut in "II Trovatore" with the Chicago Civic Op'era Company. No fairy story could be more romantic than that of Serafina. . Born in the slums on the East side of New York, the daughter of a poor Italian emigrant, sl^fe underwent hardships that probably no other opera star has ever experienced. Good Fairy Enters When school was over in the evenings there still was plenty of .work for her to do, for by running a tiny sweet shop her mother managed to add a few pence to her husbands meagre income. So. Serafina had to help in the shop at night. ' ^ While selling sweets to other children Serfina used to sing snatches of songs her mother had taugh't her, and it| .was jn this drab little shop that romance first cam.e to her. While she sang a sad Italian ballad, a slim figure wearing an expensive dress who introduced h'erself as Mrs. Remsen Vorrhis, of Elizabeth, New Jersey, listened entranced. Piano as Present Next day Serafina's eyes. nearly popped out of her head when a big van drew up at the shop, and four men commenced to unload a brandnew piqno. . . . To her amazpment th'ey told her it was for her. and that there was no trick attached to it — no moniey to pay. A few minutes later Mrs. Voorhis returned and informed her that afrangements had been made for her to attend a singing instructor. From th'en on Serafina went every day to Madame Novelli, who gave her a thorough course in voice production. ... ; Tli'en carae an invitation .to live in Mrs. Voorhis' mansison and devote herself entirely to voioe culture. Here was the fairy godmother taking little Cinderella to her fairy palace indeed. . . . After intensive study Serafina secu'red an audience with .Giovanni Martelli, who was so enthusiastic over her possibilities that he introduced her to a group of p'atrons, who finance d tlie completion of her studies in italy. -A few.-weeks ago she, sang La Scala. in. Milan, and her success was followed witbiin a short time by the con.tra.ct from phic.ago .by which