She performed as a singer with Hammerstein at the
Manhattan Opera House. The opera house was built by Hammerstein and opened in 1906. It still stands at
34th Street. When she came to America she spoke only
Italian. Trentini studied
English diligently, repeating words and phrases over and over. One difficulty for her was that she sometimes attached an incorrect meaning to a word. An example of this was when she thanked a member of the opera house staff for a favor and uttered
Kiss Me instead of
Thank You. She said the words again and again until a
linguist corrected her. At that point she fled the room, returning to her hotel to say
Thank You repeatedly! In February 1907 Trentini wore the clothing of an old woman in a production of the comic opera
Il Barbiere di Siviglia by
Gioachino Rossini. In March she appeared in her first true role in America, performing the part of
Musetta. The Manhattan Opera audience was both amused and pleased by her rendition of the
La Bohème character. The same month she became ill for several weeks after going on stage with
Nellie Melba and
Emma Calvé, against the advice of her physician. Trentini made her return in
Carmen, which she entered during the second act on April 17. She played one of the women smugglers. Although the part was a small one,
she woke up the next morning with all of New York talking about her. Trentini continued to play minor roles but her
piquant personality made them seem more significant. She made her way on stage in a routine fashion each time, with a smile and a twinkle in her eyes. She approached the kitchen chair in the first entrance at the Manhattan Opera, where the
impresario and Board of Directors were seated. At first she used to request a quarter from Hammerstein, but as time went on, he offered it unsolicited. He placed it in the
bodice of Trentini's dress. She never performed without it being there. She sang at the Manhattan for four years and piled each silver piece with the others in her room. During her second season at the Manhattan she was drafted to perform the part of
Antonia in ''
Les contes d'Hoffmann''. She did not know the
French but volunteered to learn the role. The following summer she resided in a house in the south of
France and perfected her French until she was fluent.
Claude Debussy heard her sing
Yniold in
Pelléas et Mélisande at
Covent Garden in
London. He was enthusiastic and inscribed a photo to
mon toute petite Yniold. He also heard her sing in
Proseperine by
Camille Saint-Saëns. Among her more noteworthy roles are performances as
Violetta in
La Traviata,
Nedda in
Pagliacci, and
Gilda in
Rigoletto. She appeared in many Italian cities and
Cairo. Under Hammerstein's management she sang roles in
Un ballo in maschera,
Louise, ''Les contes d'Hoffmann
, Thaïs, and "Pelléas et Mélisande''". In ''Les contes d'Hoffmann'' she played three characters by an odd turn of events. Trentini was depicting two people when Italian soprano
Lina Cavalieri became ill and could not make an evening performance. Hammerstein phoned Trentini and told her the situation. She asked that Cavalieri's part be sent to her. Within one hour of rehearsing she became
letter perfect and she sang three roles that night. ==Comic opera==