Beatrice Krebs

Beatrice Krebs (March 12, 1924 – February 5, 2011) was an American operatic mezzo-soprano born in Cleveland, Ohio. Over the course of a career spanning more than a decade of active performance, she established herself in opera, orchestral concert work, and musical theater.

Krebs launched her professional opera career in 1952 with the New York City Opera, where she sang the role of Miss Todd in Gian Carlo Menotti's The Old Maid and the Thief. The following year, in 1953, she appeared as a soloist with the Naumburg Orchestral Concerts at the Naumburg Bandshell in Central Park, a distinction she repeated in 1958. That same year marked another significant milestone: in 1956, she had originated the role of Mama McCourt in the world premiere of Douglas Moore's The Ballad of Baby Doe at the Central City Opera. She returned to that role for the New York City Opera's own premiere production in 1958 and subsequently recorded it for the company's 1959 studio recording of the opera. Also in 1959, her voice was captured on a recording of Igor Stravinsky's Threni with the Columbia Symphony Orchestra.

Krebs made her Broadway connection through The Sound of Music, appearing in the production in 1961. From that year through 1963, she performed the role of the Mother Abbess in the first national tour of the show, alongside Florence Henderson, who played Maria. Following the conclusion of the tour, Krebs transitioned into academia, joining the voice faculty at Carnegie Mellon University in 1963. She was subsequently elevated to head of the voice faculty at that institution. She died on February 5, 2011, in Golden Valley, Minnesota, at the age of 86.