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Maria Callas La
Divina Part 9
In this edition I will be writing about Callas's
important debuts. She made her official debut at La Scala in I Vespri
Siciliani in December 1951 and this opera House became her artistic home
throughout the 50's, La Scala mounted many new productions specially for
Maria Callas by directors such as Herbert Von Caravan, Margherita Wallmann,
Luchino Viscconti and Franco Zeffirelli.
Callas made her American debut in Chicago in 1954 and "with the Callas
Norma, Lyric Opera of Chicago was born." Her Metropolitan Opera debut
in November 1956, was again with Norma, but was preceded with an unflattering
cover story in Time magazine which rehashed all of the Callas clichés,
including her temper, her supposed rivalry with Renata Tebaldi, and especially
her difficult relationship with her mother.
As she had done with Lyric Opera of Chicago, in November 1958 Callas gave
a concert to inaugurate what was then billed as the Dallas Civic Opera.
She further solidified this company's reputation when in 1958, she gave
a stunning performance as Violetta in Verdi's La Traviata.
Maria Callas made her London debut at the Royal Opera House, Covent Garden
in Norma, with veteran mezzo soprano Ebe Stignani as Adalgisa. A performance
which survives today on record, and also features the young Joan Sutherland
in the small role of Clotilde.
She and the London public had what Callas herself called "a love
affair" and she returned to Covent Garden in 1953, 1957, 1958, 1959
and 1963 to 1965. It was at the Royal Opera House, Covent Garden where,
on July 5th 1965, Callas ended her stage career in the role of Tosca,
in a production designed and mounted for her by Franco Zeffirelli and
featuring her friend and colleague Tito Gobbi.
In the next issue I shall be telling of her weight loss and finishing
the articles on Maria Callas., Good listening
Bob Dymond
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