Opera Diva

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The word “diva” is used to describe talented people who tend to dramatize in every situation. This term came about in the opera world from the word divina or goddess and was meant for the greatest female opera singers. One of the great opera sopranos of all time Maria Callas earned the name diva. She became one of the most popular and important figures in opera in the postwar era. She was “La Divina” to her many opera fans and died on September 16, 1977 at the age of 53. You might think that Maria Callas was born in Greece but instead she came into this world in New York City in 1923. Her full name is worthy of a princess if she had been one – Maria Anna Sofia Cecilia Kalogeropoulou. Her mother took her and her siblings to her native Athens, Greece in 1937. Maria spent the war years studying music and performing in order to help support her family. She became well-known and a sensation in Europe. She returned to America in the late 1940s. She gained popularity when she stepped onto the operatic stage and had the habit of making sure to grab solo curtain calls whenever the opportunity presented itself. She truly managed to conquer America in the late 1950s and gained a dramatic stage presence. Do you enjoy opera? Have you heard Maria Callas sing? http://www.history.com/this-day-in-history/opera-star-maria-callas-dies