Sim Viva

Belgian soprano singer and actress

Sim Viva
Sim Viva in 1931
Born	Simone Poncelet (1903-01-12)12 January 1903 Saint-Josse-ten-Noode, Belgium
Died	10 August 1982(1982-08-10) (aged 79) Paris, France
Occupation(s)	singer and film actress
Spouse	Géo Bury

Sim Viva (12 January 1903 – 10 August 1982) was a Belgian soprano singer and actress prominent in operetta and film in the 1920s and 1930s. She made several recordings on the Ultraphone, Pathé, and Odeon labels.^[1]^[2]^[3] .

Life and career

Sim Viva was born Simone Poncelet in Saint-Josse-ten-Noode, Belgium. By 1922 she was already appearing in Paris at Le Trianon where she sang in revivals Planquette's Le Paradis de Mahomet and Terrasse's Cartouche. She returned there the following year in Sylvie.^[4]

In operetta

Sim Viva's roles in operetta and musical theatre included:^[5]

Trois jeunes filles nues by Raoul Moretti (1925) Théâtre des Bouffes-Parisiens, as Lilette (world premiere)
J'aime! by Henri Christiné (1926) Théâtre des Bouffes-Parisiens, as Nicole de Malassis de la Panouille (world premiere)
Mercenary Mary by Con Conrad and William B. Friedlander (1927) Théâtre des Bouffes-Parisiens, as Jenny (premiere of the French adaptation)
Rosy by Raoul Moretti (1930) Théâtre des Folies-Wagram, as Noisette (world premiere)
Zou! by Josef Szulc, (1930) Théâtre des Folies-Wagram, as Magali (world premiere)
Nina-Rosa by Sigmund Romberg, (1931) Théâtre du Châtelet, as Nina Rosa (French premiere)
Brummell by Reynaldo Hahn (1931) Théâtre des Folies-Wagram, as Peggy (world premiere)
La Madone du promenoir by Henri Christiné (1933) Concert Mayol, as Sylvette (world premiere)
Miss Cocktail by Maurice Bertin (1934) Théâtre Fontaine [fr] as Janine (world premiere)
Un p'tit bout d'femme by René Mercier (1936) Gaîté Lyrique, as Adrienne Baudry-Duclin (Paris premiere)
L' Auberge du chat coiffé by Josef Szulc (1936) Théâtre Pigalle as Toinette (world premiere)

Filmography

Sim Viva's film roles include:^[1]

En bordée [fr] (1931) as Mady Lagarouste
Tire au flanc [fr] (1933) as Solange
Les Époux célibataires [fr] (1935) as Cherry
Folies-Bergère [fr] (1935) as Mimi
Martha, based on Flotow's opera Martha (1936) as Lady Harriett ("Martha")
Prince d'une nuit (1936) as Simone Dastières

References

^ ^a ^b Cinémathèque Française. Viva, Sim". Retrieved 4 July 2018 (in French).
^ Bibliothèque nationale de France. "Sim Viva (1903-1982): pseudonyme individuel". Retrieved 4 July 2018 (in French).
^ s.n. (20 February 1926). "M. Géo Bury épouse Mlle Sim-Viva", Comœdia, p. 4. Retrieved 4 July 2018 (in French).
^ Gänzl, Kurt (2001). The Encyclopedia of the Musical Theatre, p. 1868. Schirmer Books. ISBN 0028649702
^ Gana, Jacques (2007)."Viva (Sim)". Encyclopédie multimédia de la comédie musicale théâtrale en France. Retrieved 4 July 2018 (in French).