Glenda Glayzer

Born in South Kingstown, Rhode Island to two Texas farm kids, one a musical child prodigy, I made my first public performance at the age of two, singing on the bar of the malt shop where my mother worked. This is my compressed biography.

I was the first of three children and my mother taught all of us to sing. In fact, even my father sang, and we recorded our first vinyl recording when I was thirteen.

My next “first” came at the age of seventeen when I auditioned for my first musical comedy and got the part. That’s where I met John Glayzer, whom I later married. We moved to Europe in 1965, first living in France, then moving on to Germany. John worked for the civilian branch of the United States Army as an Entertainment Director, and I learned my stagecraft while performing in theatrical productions on the various Army posts. In 1971 I auditioned at the Nuremberg Opera to perform American Musicals in the German language, and spent the next several years doing just that. From October 1972-73, with Larry Fuller as choreographer, I was Maria in the German premiere of West Side Story, and performed the same role in Vienna, Austria at the Volksoper with a different ensemble. This was followed in Nuremberg with Fiddler on the Roof (as Hodel.)

We returned to the United States in 1974 and moved to San Francisco where I saw a newspaper ad for auditions for Beach Blanket Babylon Goes Bananas. I was cast as one of the original members of that stage show, which has since made theatrical history. After 45 years, Beach Blanket Babylon closed December 31, 2019.

While working in Beach Blanket Babylon, I also performed in several of the more popular Cabarets in the San Francisco area. I worked with the wonderful and gifted Michael Reno who faithfully accompanied me through thick and (often) thin times. In 1978 after deciding that he needed to move to Los Angeles, he wrote a song called “San Francisco Bye-Bye”. With the aid of our backers, we recorded two versions of the song at The World-Famous Automatt in San Francisco. Although it was never released, I have made MP3s of the two songs and if you click this link, you will be taken to the page where you can listen. In the disco version, I recorded all three parts of my back-up group. Not as easy as I thought it would be.

Thinking the record would be released shortly, I left BBB in 1979 to go to Los Angeles. But some things are just not meant to be, and, when that didn’t work out, I decided to get on with my life.

When I was in San Francisco in 1987 rehearsing for the Shaklee Show that took me all over to their conventions, I went shopping just after the Black and White Ball. I bought (at great savings) one white and one black dress, both terrific. The white one was made of cotton, and over the years discolored. I couldn’t save it.

I needed a black concert dress this year for my Fall finals and asked my darling daughter if it was at her house. Turns out, she has tenderly cared for all my things all these years. She sent it to me overnight. This is the dress. Still fits. But who is that old lady?