Skip to main content
Dictionary of New Zealand Biography logo

Haurongo: Rawlinson, Mary Bertha

Contralto Bertha Rawlinson (left) performing in Gian Carlo Menotti's opera, The medium

Contralto Bertha Rawlinson (left) performing in Gian Carlo Menotti's opera, The medium
In 1955 Bertha Rawlinson made an electrifying début for the New Zealand Opera Company as Madam Flora in The medium. She is seen here performing the whipping scene with John Norton (right) as Toby.

Te whakamahi i tēnei tūemi

Alexander Turnbull Library, New Zealand Opera Company Collection

Reference: PAColl-0033-1-001

Permission of the Alexander Turnbull Library, National Library of New Zealand, Te Puna Mātauranga o Aotearoa, must be obtained before any re-use of this image.

Me pēnei te tohu i te whārang

Adrienne Simpson. 'Rawlinson, Mary Bertha', Ngā Tāngata Taumata Rau, i tāngia tuatahitia ki 2000. Te Ara - the Encyclopedia of New Zealand, https://teara.govt.nz/mi/photograph/2255/contralto-bertha-rawlinson-left-performing-in-gian-carlo-menottis-opera-the-medium (accessed 27 June 2026).