Irra Petina

Irra Petina (April 18, 1908 – January 19, 2000) was a Russian-born actress, singer, and leading contralto with the Metropolitan Opera in New York City whose Broadway career spanned from 1944 to 1965.

Born in St. Petersburg, Russia, Petina was the daughter of General Stephen Petin, who served as Czar Nicholas II's personal escort, and was a goddaughter of the Dowager Empress Marie Feodorovna. She trained as a singer in New York City under Estelle Liebling, who also taught Beverly Sills.

Petina made her Metropolitan Opera debut on December 29, 1933, as Schwertleite in Richard Wagner's Die Walküre, the second installment of the Ring Cycle. Her Met career encompassed a wide range of roles, including Maddalena in Verdi's Rigoletto alongside Jan Peerce, the Marquise of Berkenfeld in Donizetti's The Daughter of the Regiment with Lily Pons, Mallika in Delibes's Lakmé, Feodor in Boris Godunov, Annina in Richard Strauss's Der Rosenkavalier, and the title role in Bizet's Carmen. Her portrayal of Marcellina in Mozart's Le nozze di Figaro, which she performed 27 times at the Met with four radio broadcasts, earned praise from both the New York Times and the New York Herald Tribune. She also gave 35 Met performances as Berta in Rossini's The Barber of Seville. Despite being a contralto, she took on the high soprano role of Rosalinde in a 1944 national tour of Johann Strauss Jr.'s Die Fledermaus.

On Broadway, Petina appeared in Song of Norway, Magdalena, Hit-the-Trail-Holiday, Leonard Bernstein's Candide, and Anya. Her performance in Candide in 1957 earned her a Tony Award nomination for Best Featured Actress in a Musical. Critic Ken Mandelbaum referred to her as the "floperetta queen." She also appeared as herself in the 1941 film There's Magic in Music, directed by Andrew L. Stone.

Petina married Dr. Frank Bussey and died in Austin, Texas. Her personal archive is held at the Harry Ransom Center at the University of Texas at Austin.