Falling singers

[sawyl]

The news that Ana Maria Martinez has taken a tumble into the orchestra pit whilst playing Rusalka reminds me of the apocryphal story about the bouncing Tosca, that I first heard at school.

This has it that, on the first night of the run, the singer playing the lead threw herself off the battlements only to land with a substantial thump. On the second night, to muffle the sound, the stage hands increased the amount of padding, causing the singer to bounce back up after throwing herself off...