La Scala - Milan, Italy

The building we see here was inaugurated in 1778 and named after the church (Chiesa di Santa Maria alla Scala, built in 1381) that was demolished to make way for the opera house. Over the years, numerous operas by Verdi, Puccini, and Rossini, among others, premiered at La Scala. The first performance at La Scala was the performance of Antonio Salieri's Europa riconosciuta.

It may not look like much from the outside, particularly on a black-and-white postcard, but it seats 2,800, and the interior looks pretty fabulous. I have never been to La Scala, but if I did I would want to sit in the cheaper nosebleed seats (known as the loggione) above the box seats. If you sit there, I imagine you can watch the opera and all the people in the box seats too.

La Scala was severely damaged by bombing in 1943, but was rebuilt in 1946.  The opera house is currently facing a tough budget year, with a drop in both private and public contributions.

Source: Wikipedia

Here's the back of the card.

Opera House - Frankfurt, Germany

The grand old Frankfurt Opera House still stands, although it is now known as the Old Opera, having been replaced by a newer building. The original Opera House was inaugurated in 1880. Kaiser Wilhelm attended and remarked that he would not be allowed such an extravagance in Berlin.

Carmina Burana premiered here in 1937, but only seven years later, a bomb nearly destroyed the opera house. It lay in ruins for many years amid proposals to demolish it and build an office building. Instead, a citizens' initiative started raising money for a reconstruction fund in the 1950s. The opera house was finally reopened in 1981.

At the time this card was sent (sometime before 1907), senders were not allowed to write a message on the back of the card. Many people scribbled message over or around the picture on the front. Salomon Marx simply imprinted the front of the card with his personalized stamp.  He sent the card to Rachel and Esther Rousseau of Ghent, Belgium.

I couldn't find anything on the Rousseau sisters, but I did find that Salomon Marx was born into a prominent Jewish family in Frankfurt. I can only assume that this is the same Salomon Marx. He was born in 1863 and was able to emigrate (to the United States?) sometime after 1933.

More on Sarah Craven

Sarah Craven of Lawrence, Massachusetts was the recipient of the card from Chas that I posted yesterday. Chas sent the card from New York in 1910 and said he might go ashore. Was he on a cruise? Nope, Chas was a sailor on board the USS Idaho. Based on the next card, we can assume that there was some romantic connection between Chas and Sarah, at least in some people's eyes.

The card appears to have been sent from a young male relative of Sarah's who lived in the same town, maybe a nephew.  The message reads:

Received your postcard you was trying to fool me this is you and Charles kissing each other good by from Edward Craven.

Oh, but then I have this other postcard sent to Chas Walter on the USS Idaho from somebody named Clara who also lives in Lawrence, Massachusetts. She seems to think that Lawrence is HER guy.

The message reads:

Dear Chas I received your cards wish I could see you play football. I would give you a cheer. When are you coming to Boston XXXXXXXXX Clara Schneker (?)

This card was sent in 1908, so perhaps Clara was out of the picture by the time Sarah came along.