The life of a Victorian singer who began her career in Bristol will be celebrated at two events in Totterdown this weekend.

Dame Clara Butt was a contralto, who toured all over the world and lived in Bristol as a child in the 1880s.

A blue plaque marks the house in Bellevue Road, Totterdown, where she grew up.

In 1880 the family moved to Bristol and Clara was educated at South Bristol High School, where her singing talent was recognised. At the request of her headmistress, she was trained by Daniel Rootham and joined the Bristol Festival Chorus, of which he was musical director. In January 1890 she won a scholarship to the Royal College of Music.

She sang in churches and halls across the city before winning international acclaim.

Standing at over six feet tall, and with a voice that some said could be heard across the channel, Clara Butt cut an imposing figure.

She became a favourite of Queen Victoria but did not forget her Bristol connections and turned down St Paul's Cathedral as the venue for her marriage to the baritone Kennerley Rumford. Instead, the wedding took place in Bristol Cathedral and workers across the city were given a half-day holiday.

The bride was presented with a diamond and ruby brooch, formed by the initials CB, as a gift from the city.

Today the brooch is held at Bristol Museum and can be viewed by appointment.

An Audience with Dame Clara Butt will take place in the restaurant at the Star and Dove on Saturday, today at 2pm and tomorrow at 6pm. The 45-minute performance includes music by Elgar and Saint-Saens, imagined conversations with Dame Clara's contemporaries, and an opportunity for the audience to join in with Land of Hope and Glory and Rule Britannia.

Alexandra Denman, who sings and directs with Bristol Opera and regularly presents the Evening Post Christmas Concert at the Colston Hall, will be taking the lead role.

She will be accompanied by pianist John Bowen and actor Ian Bouncer, who plays a number of characters including Queen Victoria and composer Edward Elgar.

An exhibition about the contralto will also be on show.

Tickets priced £3 can be purchased in advance from Fig.1 ethical gift shop, St Lukes Road, or on the door subject to availability.

Profits will be donated to Friends of the Earth in line with the sustainability theme of this year's Totterdown Front Room art trail.