Crowning glory Crowning glory

To imagine that I have anything new to say about Maria Callas’ 1957 performance of Anna Bolena at La Scala is sheer pomposity.

on August 26, 2012 at 5:52 PM
Fifty Shades of Great Fifty Shades of Great

Those adorable kids over at EMI Classics have followed up the ridiculous with the sublime: an mp3 download of 50 arias (over four hours of music) sung by Maria Callas for… are you ready? 99 cents.

on August 17, 2012 at 5:47 PM
Stairway to paradise Stairway to paradise

We approach, beloveds, as unto a shrine, for these are no ordinary performances.

on August 06, 2012 at 11:15 PM

Only because I am a member of the You Can Never Have Too Much Callas School of Opera Listening can I recommend EMI’s new release The Callas Effect.  The beautifully packaged production is the size of a small paperback book and consists of two CDs with 29 arias sung by Callas plus a new 70-minute…

on November 22, 2011 at 7:15 PM

The already notorious or celebrated or whatever it is version of the “Habanera” featuring (in alphabetical order) Maria Callas and Angela Gheorghiu: it’s been released, and you can experience after the jump.

on November 02, 2011 at 12:17 PM

Even though that other soprano, whatever her name is, has garnered a lot of ink for opening the Met season with Anna Bolena, the real news here is the “dream team” Gheorghiu/Callas collaboration, a highlight of which has been the “Divina Draculette” photo retouching competition. La Cieca has sifted the many fine entries and has…

on September 19, 2011 at 3:38 PM

La Cieca would like to nudge gently the cher public with a reminder that there is only one day left in the great “Divina Draculette” photo retouching competition, noting the slight change in rules calling for you to email La Cieca with your photos. Prizes for the best in show include Sony’s live Met CD…

on September 16, 2011 at 2:48 PM

On this day 34 years ago, Maria Callas died in her apartment in Paris. Since then the iconic diva has been recollected, documented, analyzed, digitized and portrayed by Tyne Daly.  La Cieca invites you, the cher public, to keep her mind today by sharing your favorite Callas performances in the comments section.

on September 16, 2011 at 11:09 AM

Oh, this should turn out well:  “Angela Gheorghiu has recorded a collection of French and Italian opera arias in tribute to the late Maria Callas for EMI Classics…. included are arias by Puccini, Gounod, Bellini, Leoncavallo, Saint-Saëns, Catalani, Bizet, Giordano, Cherubini, Massenet and Cilèa.” Which gives La Cieca an idea for a competition, after the…

on September 13, 2011 at 10:35 AM

Like the double or triple negative (where theoretically pairs of “nots” cancel each other out, but in practice you can’t be so sure) this tidbit of news La Cieca just read has her confused and uncertain. It seems that at a recital in Tulsa last night, Dame Kiri te Kanawa sang as an encore a…

on March 30, 2011 at 8:39 AM

“Le pene d’amore non uccisero la Callas” reads the rather sensational headline: “The pains of love did not kill Callas.” The actual story in La Stampa is more sober, telling of an investigative study into the causes of the diva’s vocal decline and eventual death.

on December 14, 2010 at 3:58 PM

La Divina was born on (or about) December 3, 1923.

on December 03, 2010 at 12:20 PM

Maria Callas died 33 years ago, September 16, 1977.

on September 16, 2010 at 12:05 AM

“Greek Fire…. will see [Eva] Mendes playing the role of famed opera singer Maria Callas, but don’t expect her to be doing any arias, or even lip-synching for that matter. Instead, the biographical drama will focus on Callas’ scandalous affair with shipping magnate Aristotle Onassis.” [Toronto Sun]

on August 06, 2010 at 2:54 PM

French actress and Bond Girl Eva Green (Casino Royale) is in talks to star as Maria Callas in a biopic from Italy’s DeAngelis Group (DAP) and British producer partner Future Films. The project will be co-produced by Swarovski, “whose bling was often worn by the iconic opera star on stage and off.” [Hollywood Reporter]

on July 19, 2010 at 3:22 PM

After all these years of solitude, La Cieca has finally found another opera fan with a Maria Callas tattoo! More photos after the jump.

on June 02, 2010 at 11:35 AM

La Cieca is delighted to hear that the Opéra de Paris and soprano Natalie Dessay just last night performed an hommage to Maria Callas by recreating one of the most famous nights of La Divina’s career. Unfortunately, that “night” was January 2, 1958, and in the intervening half century, opera management still hasn’t learned its…

on February 19, 2010 at 8:00 AM

Our Own JJ discusses Maria Callas and her Voice Of Perfect Imperfection with NPR’s Lynn Neary.

on February 15, 2010 at 11:55 AM

“Oh God! Oh justice dear to God!  Oh light of the sun!” La Divina discusses her cinematic debut. 

on January 25, 2010 at 6:24 PM

Maria Callas was born 86 years ago today in New York City.

on December 03, 2009 at 4:07 PM

La Cieca hears that Eva Mendes (“Crystal” in the recent horrific remake of The Women) will play Maria Callas in a biopic based on the diva’s life.

on June 11, 2009 at 12:00 PM

One of La Cieca’s most trusted spies wangled his way into the house last night for the surprise cast change in Lucia di Lammermoor, and here’s his report: Perhaps it is the side benefit of low expectations, but I was not offended by Anna Netrebko‘s performance on Tuesday night. Though certainly not a bel canto…

on February 04, 2009 at 11:01 AM

The very first issue of parterre box (the queer opera zine) was published on December 3, 1993, the 70th anniversary of the of birth Maria Callas.  And so that must mean that parterre box is exactly 15 years old today! To kick off what La Cieca devoutly hopes will be festivities, here is an interview…

on December 03, 2008 at 12:05 AM

“Maria Callas arrives in San Francisco in 1958 with her toy poodle and 17 pieces of luggage,” reported the San Francisco Chronicle 50 years ago (November 24, 2008).

on November 14, 2008 at 6:42 PM
WordPress › Error

There has been a critical error on this website.

Learn more about troubleshooting WordPress.