a most endearing cat

Helen Henschel writes in her autobiography: 'The first performance in England of Wagner's Symphony conducted by my father [George Henschel] . . . reminds me of the famous Wagner cat which inhabited St. James' Hall. This animal is said to have walked on to the platform at rehearsals whenever any work by Wagner was being played -- and at no other time. I believe it was always shut up during Wagner concerts, but managed to escape once or twice and stalk majestically to the centre of the platform. Whether or not in time to the music, history does not relate. When Soft Voices Die, p. 84