Stella Power

[4] Another has her given that cognomen while appearing at The Auditorium, Melbourne under the management of the Tait brothers, for her light soprano voice and wide range (B below middle-C to F and G in alt).

Her farewell concert at the Melbourne Town Hall on 26 November was well-attended and enthusiastic,[6] and she arrived in San Francisco accompanied by her teacher Mary Campbell, a month later.

[5] She made her American debut in Philadelphia, then sang with the Boston Symphony Orchestra,[3] followed by a tour with violinists Eugène Ysaÿe and Mischa Elman.

[8] In August 1918 she had a second farewell concert at The Auditorium, again rapturously applauded, but critics found more interest in John Amadio's flute and the vocal contributions of Norman Bradshaw, Dorothy Murdoch and Frederick Mewton than Power's "birdlike top notes and dainty trills".

[11] She had another farewell concert, at the Melbourne Town Hall—another triumph, again aided by Amadio, and with soloists Joseph Foster and Ivy Phillips, with accompanist Waldemar Seidel,[12] then left for London via New York.

[16] Power remained in England for three years, touring provincial cities, at times sharing the stage with Jean Gerardy, Lauri Kennedy, John McCormack, Wilhelm Backhaus, and Jan Kubelík.

[18] She returned to Melbourne in April 1923 by the SS Osterley, accompanied by her son, her accompanist William G. James, and his wife Saffo Arnav.

This was a period of dramatic change in the theatre — silent movies gave way to talkies and jazz began to dominate entertainment venues, and finally the Great Depression was starting to eat into the household economy.

[30][31] O'Rourke, an amateur vocalist, was a representative of the Sydney firm Petersen, Boesen and Co.[11] Power received a monogrammed suitcase as a wedding gift from Melba.