Trilby

Three English art students in Paris (Taffy, Laird, and William Bagot alias 'Little Billee') meet musicians Svengali and Gecko and the artist's model and laundress Trilby O'Ferrall.Trilby is cheerful, kindhearted, bohemian, and completely tone-deaf. Yet despite being off-key, her singing voice nonetheless has an impressive quality. The Englishmen and Trilby become friends. Svengali tries to persuade Trilby to let him train her voice, but she finds him repulsive and even frightening. She and Little Billee fall in love, but his scandalized relatives get her to promise to leave him. She leaves Paris with her little brother, who later dies of scarlet fever. Trilby then falls under Svengali's influence. He hypnotises her and transforms her into a diva, La Svengali. Under his spell, Trilby becomes a talented singer, performing always in an amnesiac trance. Five years later, Little Billee is a famous painter. He, Laird and Taffy recognise Trilby as she performs at a concert. Trilby sings beautifully but does not appear to be in good health. What will happen to Trilby now? Will she and Svengali have a happy ending? Read on!

George du Maurier (1834-1896) was a Franco-British cartoonist and writer known for his work in Punch and for his Gothic novel Trilby, which featured the character Svengali. He was the father of the actor Sir Gerald du Maurier and grandfather of the writers Angela du Maurier and Dame Daphne du Maurier and artist Jeanne du Maurier. He was also the father of Sylvia Llewelyn Davies and grandfather of the five boys who inspired J. M. Barrie's Peter Pan.