Prime donne often had grand off-stage personalities and were seen as demanding of their colleagues. Because of this, the term has spread in contemporary usage, from its original usage in opera to referring to anyone behaving in a demanding or temperamental fashion or having an inflated view of oneself.
The prima donna in opera was normally, but not necessarily, a soprano. The corresponding term for the male lead (usually a castrato in the 17th and 18th centuries, later a tenor) is primo uomo.[1]
In 19th-century Italy, the leading woman in an opera or commedia dell'arte company was known as the prima donna, literally the "first lady". This woman, usually the principal soprano of the company, would typically perform leading roles and generally sing more music than other women in the company.[1] Famous opera prime donne have often caused opera enthusiasts to divide into opposing "clubs", supporting one singer over another. The rivalry between the fans of Maria Callas and Renata Tebaldi, for example, was one of the most famous, despite the friendship of the two singers.[2]
The designation prima donna assoluta (absolute first lady) is occasionally applied to a prima donna of outstanding excellence.[3] It has also been used to describe the creators of heroic coloratura roles in the first half of the 19th century.[4]
The woman who sang the second major part in an opera was, correspondingly, referred to as the seconda donna; by the late 18th century, this role was sometimes called the altra prima donna.[5]
Personalityedit
At times, these prime donne had grand off-stage personalities and strict demands of fellow troupe members, musicians, set and wardrobe designers, producers, and other staff. However, they were deferentially tolerated because of their consummate talent and their draw at the box office. From this experience, the term prima donna has come into common usage in any field, denoting someone who behaves in a demanding, often temperamental fashion, revealing an inflated view of themselves, their talent, and their importance.[6] Due to this association, the contemporary meaning of the word has taken on the negative connotation of a vain, undisciplined, egotistical, obnoxious, or temperamental person who finds it difficult to work under direction or as part of a team but whose contributions are essential to the success of the team.[7][8]
Richard Somerset-Ward. Angels and Monsters: Male and Female Sopranos in the Story of Opera, 1600-1900, Yale University Press, 2004. ISBN0-300-09968-1
January 01, 1970
prima, donna, this, article, about, female, opera, singer, other, uses, prima, donna, disambiguation, redirects, here, philippine, television, drama, series, prima, donnas, opera, commedia, dell, arte, italian, comedy, prima, donna, ˈpriːma, ˈdɔnna, italian, f. This article is about the female opera singer For other uses see Prima Donna disambiguation Prima donnas redirects here For the Philippine television drama series see Prima Donnas In opera or commedia dell arte Italian comedy a prima donna ˈpriːma ˈdɔnna Italian for first lady plural prime donne is the leading female singer in the company the person to whom the prime roles would be given Prima Donna clipper ship card Prime donne often had grand off stage personalities and were seen as demanding of their colleagues Because of this the term has spread in contemporary usage from its original usage in opera to referring to anyone behaving in a demanding or temperamental fashion or having an inflated view of oneself The prima donna in opera was normally but not necessarily a soprano The corresponding term for the male lead usually a castrato in the 17th and 18th centuries later a tenor is primo uomo 1 Contents 1 Opera 2 Personality 3 See also 4 References 5 Further readingOpera edit nbsp Nita Carritte Prima Donna Carl Rosa Opera Company 1895 In 19th century Italy the leading woman in an opera or commedia dell arte company was known as the prima donna literally the first lady This woman usually the principal soprano of the company would typically perform leading roles and generally sing more music than other women in the company 1 Famous opera prime donne have often caused opera enthusiasts to divide into opposing clubs supporting one singer over another The rivalry between the fans of Maria Callas and Renata Tebaldi for example was one of the most famous despite the friendship of the two singers 2 The designation prima donna assoluta absolute first lady is occasionally applied to a prima donna of outstanding excellence 3 It has also been used to describe the creators of heroic coloratura roles in the first half of the 19th century 4 The woman who sang the second major part in an opera was correspondingly referred to as the seconda donna by the late 18th century this role was sometimes called the altra prima donna 5 Personality editAt times these prime donne had grand off stage personalities and strict demands of fellow troupe members musicians set and wardrobe designers producers and other staff However they were deferentially tolerated because of their consummate talent and their draw at the box office From this experience the term prima donna has come into common usage in any field denoting someone who behaves in a demanding often temperamental fashion revealing an inflated view of themselves their talent and their importance 6 Due to this association the contemporary meaning of the word has taken on the negative connotation of a vain undisciplined egotistical obnoxious or temperamental person who finds it difficult to work under direction or as part of a team but whose contributions are essential to the success of the team 7 8 See also editConvenienze Diva EntitlementReferences edit a b H Rosenthal H and J Warrack The Concise Oxford Dictionary of Opera 2nd Edition Oxford University Press 1979 p 398 ISBN 0 19 311321 X See for example George Jellinek Callas Portrait of a Prima Donna Dover 1986 p 96 and passim ISBN 0486250474 Oxford English Dictionary Draft revision 2009 Riggs Geoffrey 2003 The Assoluta Voice in Opera 1797 1847 p 1 McFarland ISBN 0786414014 Seconda donna Oxford Music Online 2002 Susan Rutherford The Prima Donna and Opera 1815 1930 Cambridge University Press 2006 ISBN 0 521 85167 X The Oxford Pocket Dictionary of Current English 2009 prima donna Encyclopedia com 12 Sep 2010 Merriam Webster prima donna Merriam Webster com Further reading edit nbsp Look up prima donna in Wiktionary the free dictionary Rupert Christiansen Prima Donna A History London The Bodley Head 1984 ISBN 0 370 30550 7 New York Viking 1985 ISBN 0 670 80482 7 Richard Somerset Ward Angels and Monsters Male and Female Sopranos in the Story of Opera 1600 1900 Yale University Press 2004 ISBN 0 300 09968 1 Retrieved from https en wikipedia org w index php title Prima donna amp oldid 1222598769, wikipedia, wiki, book, books, library,
