Maria Callas, the Myth and the Legend

The myth, the voice, the enigma. The Fondazione Zeffirelli hosts an event dedicated to one of the most fascinating and controversial figures of the twentieth century.

 

On Friday, March 6 at 4:30 pm, in the educational rooms of the Fondazione Franco Zeffirelli, the volume La divina Maria (2023) by Francesco Cotticelli and Paologiovanni Maione will be presented.

An event designed for opera lovers and for all those who continue to reflect on the artistic and human legacy of Maria Callas, the absolute icon who revolutionized twentieth-century musical theatre.

 

The book was published on the occasion of the centenary of the birth of “La Divina” and brings together a series of essays exploring the “Callas phenomenon” in its many dimensions: her musical training, meteoric rise to fame, major artistic encounters, her relationship with the stage and the public, and the lights and shadows of an unprecedented form of stardom. It also examines the twilight years, the silence, and the making of a legend that continues to resonate today.

 

What emerges is the portrait of a revolutionary singer and an exceptional actress capable of transforming every role into an absolute dramatic experience, as well as that of a woman whose personal story reflects—intensified—the anxieties of the contemporary world. To speak of Maria Callas is to confront the subtle boundary between art and life, between myth and fragility.

 

The presentation will take the form of a dialogue with the authors, offering the audience the opportunity to step inside the critical workshop that gave shape to the volume. Speakers will include Antonella D’Ovidio (University of Florence), Renzo Guardenti (University of Florence), and Marzia Pieri (University of Siena), in a discussion intertwining musicological, theatrical, and historical-cultural perspectives.

 

The event will last approximately one hour and a half and forms part of a broader program dedicated to the great operatic tradition and its protagonists, in a place that stands as a symbol of performing arts culture: the Fondazione Zeffirelli.

 

Free admission subject to availability.
For information: +39 320 1637839.

 

A valuable opportunity to listen once more—through critical reflection—to the voice that forever changed the way opera is understood.