on 27 October 1906 was the second ever in the US, following that of Elsa Szamosy by only twelve days. Florence held a world record of more than three hundred appearances in Madama Butterfly, her favourite role. From 1907 to 1913 she and her husband Francis Maclennan were members of the Berlin Royal Opera, singing a variety of roles. She had to learn the role of Marguerite in German within 10 days, and followed up by learning and performing Aida within 48 hours without rehearsal. She was immediately given a five-year contract. They became firm friends of Kaiser Wilhelm. Florence was coached by Richard Strauss for the title role in the English version of his Elektra, at the London premiere at Covent Garden in 1910. After the 1912–13 season the Maclennans joined the Hamburg Opera Stadtische Opera, where she first sang with Enrico Caruso in 1913. In 1915–16, the couple toured America where Florence appeared in a single performance as Brünnhilde in Siegfried, achieving a great popular and critical success. Due to the First World War it was too risky to return to Germany, so they remained in the United States, becoming members of the Chicago Opera Association where she debuted in Siegfried. She remained with the Chicago Opera for two seasons, becoming one of the best-known Wagnerian sopranos in the United States. In 1917, she made her debut at he Metropolitan Opera in New York as Santuzza in Cavalleria Rusticana. She remained at the Met for 12 seasons, singing 41 parts and nearly 300 performances. While in New York, Easton studied with Anna E. Schoen-René, a student of Pauline Viardot-García and Manuel García. It was her performance as the Saint Elisabeth in the staged version of Liszt's Die Legende von der heiligen Elisabeth in 1918 which set her into the first rank of Metropolitan Opera stars. Florence created the role of Lauretta at the world premiere of Puccini¹s Gianni Schicchi on 14 December 1918 at the Met; she was the first to sing the now famous aria "O mio babbino caro" ("O My Beloved Papa"). Puccini could not get to New York for the premiere, so the Met's general manager Giulio Gatti-Casazza sent a telegram to Puccini after the performance: "Most happy to announce the complete authentic success of the Trittico. At the end of each opera long very sincere demonstrations more than forty warm curtain calls altogether. In