- Born
- Died
- Birth nameMárta Eggert
- Nickname
- The Callas of Operetta
- From the day she was born Martha lived in a world of music. For sure her father was a banker but he was also an amateur pianist. As for her mother, she was a housewife but also a very talented opera singer who had given up her career for the joys of matrimony and motherhood. It does not come as a surprise, under such circumstances, that the little girl's singing capacities were soon discovered. At eight she was already on a scene singing an aria from "The Barber of Seville". A critic attended the show and was impressed by her performance. He introduced her to the director of the Magyar Theater, where she landed her first contract. As of the age of 10 she was hailed as Hungary's "national idol". And it was not long before her triumph became international. An operetta, "Pogasza", was written specially for the crystal-clear-voiced little singer. Among others, she played the role of the doll in "Tales of Hoffmann" and starred in "Das Veilchen vom Montmartre" by Kalman. With the advent of sound films, she found herself very much in demand in the 1930s, bringing her beautiful voice and looks to yet more delighted viewers. It is on the set of "Mein Herz ruft nach dir" that she met Jan Kiepura, another successful opera and operetta singer. Although it was not love at first sight, Jan and Martha gradually fell in love, married two years later, had two sons and were separated only by death with the demise of Jan in 1966. In 1938, the couple fled Austria after its annexation by Hitler and settled down in the South of France first then in the USA. Martha made fewer movies but kept on singing. For instance she co-starred in "The merry Widow" in Broadway for three years with Jan Kiepura. She became an American citizen in the fifties and currently lives in Rye, new York.- IMDb Mini Biography By: Guy Bellinger
- SpouseJan Kiepura(October 31, 1936 - August 15, 1966) (his death, 2 children)
- Her last performance was at age 99 in 2011.
- Because Martha Eggerth was of Jewish extraction, the political situation in Germany became more and more uncomfortable. She eventually emigrated to the USA with Jan Kiepura where both could continue her career without any difficulties because her names already conquered the world before. Both triumphed on Broadway with plays like "The Merry Widow" and "Polonaise".
- Martha Eggert's career began very early and because of her wonderful voice she soon was called a child prodigy who filled concert halls.
- Kiepura died in 1966. Eggerth stopped singing at this time for several years. Finally, persuaded by her mother, she decided to revive her career. In the 1970s she began to make regular television appearances, and to actively perform concerts in Europe. In 1982, she returned to the American stage to co-star in the Tom Jones/Harvey Schmidt musical Colette opposite Diana Rigg in Seattle and Denver, and later in Stephen Sondheim's Follies in Pittsburgh.
- Still living at her home in Rye, New York, USA. She has released a new album of earlier recordings, "Marta Eggerth: My Life My Song" (Patria Productions), produced by her son, Marjan Kiepura.
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