Richard Cassilly (December 14, 1927 – January 30, 1998) was an American operatic tenor who had a major international opera career between 1954–90. Cassilly "was a mainstay in the heldentenor repertory in opera houses around the world for 30 years", and particularly excelled in Wagnerian roles like Tristan, Siegmund and Tannhäuser, and in dramatic parts that required both stamina and vocal weight, such as Giuseppe Verdi's Otello and Camille Saint-Saëns's Samson.
He was an admired Don José in Carmen and sang almost all of the leading Puccini tenor roles. Standing at 6'3" and possessing a 250-pound frame The New York Times described him as "a burly tenor with a bright ping on the top notes who had a supple lyric quality [to his voice]", and "was known to bring a musical intelligence and uncommonly clear diction to his work."
Cassilly spent the early years of his opera career singing primarily with the New York City Opera between 1955–1966, often portraying roles in obscure and contemporary operas. During these years he also traveled frequently throughout North America, appearing with most of the major opera companies in the United States and Canada. In 1965 he launched a major international opera career when he portrayed the title role in a critically acclaimed production of Heinrich Sutermeister's Raskolnikoff at the Grand Théâtre de Genève. This performance earned him a contract with the Hamburg State Opera as their leading in-house dramatic tenor, a position he held from 1965 to 1978. Engagements with other major companies soon followed, and by 1973 Cassilly had sung leading roles with almost every major opera house in Europe, including La Scala, the Opéra National de Paris, the Vienna State Opera, and the Bavarian State Opera.
Cassilly also forged a strong collaborative partnership with the Royal Opera in London, appearing in that house almost every year from 1968 to 1982. In 1978 he joined the roster of principal tenors at the Metropolitan Opera in New York City, where he spent the majority of his time until his retirement in 1990.
Born in Washington, D.C., Cassilly spent his childhood on a farm near Aberdeen, Maryland where he attended Bel Air High School where his voice potential was first recognized. He became involved in music through singing in his high school's glee club. In 1946, at the age of eighteen, he entered the Peabody Conservatory at Johns Hopkins University where he studied singing with Hans Heinz. As a student he sang in college productions of The Flying Dutchman (as the Steersman) and Madama Butterfly (as Pinkerton). During this time he also had the opportunity to study under Rosa Ponselle who had retired from her career and was residing in Baltimore.
After graduating with a degree in vocal performance in 1952, Cassilly moved to New York City with his first wife and their first child to pursue a performance career. Shortly thereafter he became a member of the John Harms Chorus singing with them at such venues as Town Hall between 1952–1954. He also worked as a paid singer for a couple of different churches during this time. Eventually his break came in 1954 when he was hired by William Steinberg as the tenor soloist in Beethoven's Symphony No. 9 with the Pittsburgh Symphony. This was followed by his operatic debut on Broadway as A Young Man and understudy for Michele in Gian Carlo Menotti's The Saint of Bleecker Street in December 1954. The production was a particular hit with the New York public and ran through April 1955. After it closed, the NBC Opera Theatre decided to use the cast for a televised version of the show.
American fame and the New York City Opera years:1955–1966
Cassilly's performance in The Saint of Bleecker Street drew the attention of Joseph Rosenstock, director of the New York City Opera (NYCO), who invited him to audition for the company in the Spring of 1955. Impressed with the audition, Rosenstock offered him a contract with the company and Cassilly made his NYCO debut in the title role of Tchaikovsky's Cherevichki (performed under the title The Golden Slipper) opposite Beverly Sills as Oxana on October 13, 1955. In 1959 he is Énée in Les Troyens conducted by Robert Lawrence.
Cassilly sang regularly at the NYCO in productions through 1966, often in contemporary operas or in rarely heard works. He notably sang in several American premieres with the company including Ferdinand in Frank Martin's The Tempest in 1957 and the Jailer in Luigi Dallapiccola's Il prigioniero, with Norman Treigle and Leopold Stokowski, in 1960. His other roles with the NYCO included Don José in Carmen, Edgar Linton in Carlisle Floyd's Wuthering Heights, Paco in La vida breve, Peter Quint in The Turn of the Screw, Pinkerton in Madama Butterfly, Sam Polk in Susannah, the Soldier in Bucci's Tale for a Deaf Ear, the Tenor in Hugo Weisgall's The Tenor, and the title roles in Stravinsky's Oedipus rex among others. His last performance as a regular member of the company was in March 1966 as Sergei in Dmitri Shostakovich's Lady Macbeth of the Mtsensk District (performed under the title Katerina Ismailova).
During his time with NYCO Cassilly was also busy with many other musical ensembles and organizations in New York City. He sang often with the American Opera Society (AOS) in concert performances of operas at Carnegie Hall and Town Hall, sharing the stage with such opera greats as Walter Berry, Marilyn Horne, Christa Ludwig, Regina Resnik, Giulietta Simionato, Eleanor Steber, and Dame Joan Sutherland among others. His roles with the AOS included Percy in Anna Bolena (1957), Tebaldo in I Capuleti e i Montecchi (1958), Énée in Les Troyens (1960), Orombello in Beatrice di Tenda (1961), and Pylade in Iphigénie en Tauride (1965). He also sang the role of Hermann in a concert performance of The Queen of Spades opposite Phyllis Curtin in the title role and sang the role of Martin in Aaron Copland's The Tender Land, both with the New York Philharmonic in 1965.
Although Cassilly was primarily working in New York during these years, he did travel frequently for performances with other companies and musical ensembles both in United States and internationally. In 1955 he made his first appearance in Philadelphia at the Mann Center for the Performing Arts with the Robin Hood Dell Orchestra as Don José in a concert performance Carmen. That same year he sang his first Mario Cavaradossi in Tosca opposite Licia Albanese in the title role in his debut with the Philadelphia Grand Opera Company. He returned with a critically acclaimed performance singing the roles of Don José (1958) and Pinkerton (1958, 1960, 1961). He also sang a few times with the Philadelphia Lyric Opera Company during these years in the roles of Oedipus rex (1959), Sam Polk (1960), and the title role in Wagner's Lohengrin (1961).
Cassilly made his first appearance outside of the United States in 1957 with the Canadian Opera Company as Cavaradossi in Tosca. He reprised the role later that year at Fort Worth Opera with Phyllis Curtin in the title role and Walter Cassel as Scarpia. In February 1958 he sang Pollione in Bellini's Norma with New Orleans Opera. This was followed by his European debut in July 1958 portraying the role of Sam Polk in Carlisle Floyd's Susannah at the Brussels World's Fair in a production transported from the NYCO. In the summer of 1959 he sang the title role in Peter Grimes and portrayed the role of Don José opposite Nell Rankin's Carmen with Cincinnati Opera.
The following November he made his first appearance with the Lyric Opera of Chicago as Laca Klemeň in Leoš Janáček's Jenůfa opposite Sylvia Fisher.
In 1960 Cassilly sang Don José for three house debut performances: the Houston Grand Opera (in January opposite Claramae Turner as Carmen), the Vancouver Opera (in April with Nan Merriman as Carmen), and the Opera Company of Boston (in May with Gloria Lane as Carmen). In the summer of that year he returned to Cincinnati Opera to sing his first Radames in Aida, and in the Fall he went back to the Lyric Opera of Chicago to sing both Don José (opposite Jean Madeira) and Pinkerton (opposite Leontyne Price). He performed the role of Roméo opposite Pierrette Alarie's Juliette in Gounod's Roméo et Juliette in Montreal in January 1961. In 1962 he returned to the Houston Grand Opera to sing two new roles, Canio in I Pagliacci and Walther in Die Meistersinger von Nürnberg. In the Summer of 1963 he sang his first Manrico in Verdi's Il trovatore with Lucine Amara as Leonora for his debut with Central City Opera. This was followed by his first Don Alvaro in Verdi's La forza del destino in November with New Orleans Opera. In 1964 he debuted with the San Francisco Opera as Max in Der Freischütz and returned to Cincinnati Opera to sing his first Baron von Eisenstein in Die Fledermaus.