Mira Heller by Antonopoulo (2)

Mira Heller (1866-?); Polish mezzosoprano.
She studied singing with Biernacki in Staniswalów and with Paschalis-Souvestre in Lwow (Lemberg). In 1887 she made her debut at Lemberg in the title role of Bizet's "Carmen". In 1890 she made guest appearances at Krakov, Milan and Venice. In the season 1891/92 she appeared at the opera in Odessa and Kiev. In 1892 she was engaged at the Wiener Hofoper and the Budapest Opera. In 1893 she had a great success at the Grand Opera in Warsaw, where she performed the roles of Mignon, Carmen, Amneris (in Aida), Santuzza (in Cavalleria rusticana) and Selika (in L'Africaine). In that same year she continued her vocal studies with the famous soprano Pauline Lucca. In 1894 she made her Metropolitan debut in New York as Mignon, followed by performances as Carmen and Santuzza. She then returned to Europe and continued her career in Poland and Russia. After her marriage she left the stage, but in 1902 she gave some occasional concerts in Krakow under the name of Maria Olszewska. After the first world war she went to the USA where she lived until her death.

On the photo she is seen as Amneris in Verdi's "Aida".