Altonell Hines

Hines began her career in New York city in the early 1930s as a member of Eva Jessye's Radio and Concert Choir.^[15][3][5] She was initially cast in the chorus in the original production of Virgil Thomson's Four Saints in Three Acts.^[16] During the rehearsal process she was promoted to the principal role of the Commere after several other singers didn't work out due to the difficulty of the part.^[16] She performed the role in its premiere at the Wadsworth Atheneum's Avery Hall on February 7, 1934.^[17]

Hines remained with Four Saints in Three Acts when it transferred to Broadway's 44th Street Theatre where it ran from February 20, 1934 - March 17, 1934.^[18] It then transferred to the Empire Theatre for further performances.^[18] Also in the cast was baritone Edward Matthews in the role of St. Ignatius.^[17] They also performed together in the original cast of Porgy and Bess (1935) with Edward as fisherman Jake and Altonell in the chorus of Catfish Row residents.^[3]

Hines and Matthews became romantically involved,^[5] and married on December 22, 1936.^[19] After her marriage, Altonell continued to perform under her maiden name.^[5] She sang in a swing music quintet in the early 1940s.^[20] Both Altonell and her husband reprised their roles in Four Saints in Three Acts multiple times; including at the The Town Hall in 1941,^[21] on a national radio broadcast with the CBS Symphony Orchestra in 1947,^[22] on a 1947 recording of the opera made with RCA Victor,^[23] and in the 1952 revival of the opera given in New York and in Paris, France.^[3][24]

Altonell Hines died on 6 August 1977.^[2][5] at her home in New York City^[5] at the age of of 69.^[2] Her husband died in a car accident in 1954,^[25] Outside or performance, Hines was heavily involved with the National Urban League and the A.M.E. Zion Church on the Hill in New York.^[5]

• Four Saints in Three Acts (1947, RCA 68163)^[26]

• Dietz, Dan (2018). The Complete Book of 1930s Broadway Musicals. Rowman & Littlefield Publishers. ISBN 9781538102770.
• Southern, Eileen (1982). Biographical dictionary of Afro-American and African musicians. Internet Archive. Westport, Conn. : Greenwood Press. ISBN 978-0-313-21339-7.