Deon van der Walt his debut as Almaviva in Rossini’s "The Barber of Seville". He was counted amongst the leading lyric tenors of his day and performed at all the world’s major opera houses, including He also performed at numerous international festivals, especially at the Salzburg Festival, where he sang Belmonte in Mozart's "Abduction from the Seraglio" and Ferrando in "Così fan tutte" under Riccardo Muti. On video, he can be seen in Handel's "Semele" as Jupiter, singing a long, beautifully shaped "Where'er you walk"; in Donizetti's "Linda di Chamounix" with Edita Gruberová; and in "La belle Hélène". Deon van der Walt died at
Josephine Lucchese "Rigoletto", Lady Harriet Durham in "Martha", Micaëla in "Carmen", Rosina in "The Barber of Seville", Violetta in "La traviata", and the title role in "Lucia di Lammermoor". In 1925 Lucchese performed Violetta to 's Alfredo at the Academy of Music in the very first performance of the Philadelphia La Scala Opera Company. In 1926 she made her debut with the Philadelphia Grand Opera Company (PGOC) as Gilda to Millo Picco's Rigoletto. She later became a resident artist with the PGOC from 1929 until the company's bankruptcy in 1932, performing such roles as Konstanze in "The Abduction from the Seraglio", Leïla