Part of Series
WHEN THE CURTAIN GOES DOWN, THE REAL DRAMA BEGINS The American Grand Opera has come to River Heights to perform "Tosca, Aida," and "The Marriage of Figaro," and Nancy's friend Bess is going to be a chorus extra. It's all so exciting for the girls; the costumes, the music, the glamor! Little do they expect, though, the drama that will take place backstage. When a falling sandbag from the scenery catwalk nearly misses the two female stars of the opera during a dress rehearsal, Nancy begins to suspect foul play. As it turns out, the falling sandbag isn't the first incident of the tour. In the dressing room, Nancy finds out that rival singers Rosacrucia Alba, the hot new soprano, and Marta Willentz, an older member of the company, have been involved in a few scary situations. As rehearsals continue and the threat to these singers increases, Nancy scrambles to determine why someone is trying to ensure that only one singer will be the star of these shows.
Author
Carolyn Keene is a writer pen name that was used by many different people- both men and women- over the years. The company that was the creator of the Nancy Drew series, the Stratemeyer Syndicate, hired a variety of writers. For Nancy Drew, the writers used the pseudonym Carolyn Keene to assure anonymity of the creator. Edna and Harriet Stratemeyer inherited the company from their father Edward Stratemeyer. Edna contributed 10 plot outlines before passing the reins to her sister Harriet. It was Mildred Benson (aka: Mildred A. Wirt), who breathed such a feisty spirit into Nancy's character. Mildred wrote 23 of the original 30 Nancy Drew Mystery Stories®, including the first three. It was her characterization that helped make Nancy an instant hit. The Stratemeyer Syndicate's devotion to the series over the years under the reins of Harriet Stratemeyer Adams helped to keep the series alive and on store shelves for each succeeding generation of girls and boys. In 1959, Harriet, along with several writers, began a 25-year project to revise the earlier Carolyn Keene novels. The Nancy Drew books were condensed, racial stereotypes were removed, and the language was updated. In a few cases, outdated plots were completely rewritten. Other writers of Nancy Drew volumes include Harriet herself, she wrote most of the series after Mildred quit writing for the Syndicate and in 1959 began a revision of the first 34 texts. The role of the writer of "Carolyn Keene" passed temporarily to Walter Karig who wrote three novels during the Great Depression. Also contributing to Nancy Drew's prolific existence were Leslie McFarlane, James Duncan Lawrence, Nancy Axelrod, Priscilla Doll, Charles Strong, Alma Sasse, Wilhelmina Rankin, George Waller Jr., and Margaret Scherf.
