More Diva Inspiration

Thomas pointed me to this great video of Maria Callas (thanks Thomas!)


Some of the still images really capture the combination of beauty and terror that I would like to achieve. Also, the footage of her singing is interesting from a physical point of view - her face and hands are expressive but her torso is perfectly still, no doubt to support the vocal technique.

And the Wagnerian singer Birgit Nilsson as Lady Macbeth:



Obviously the role demands a fierce intensity, but Nilsson herself naturally had a solid, formidable stance that seems to be ubiquitous for performing Wagner.

In an article for the New York Times, David Schiff writes:

"There are singers, and there are Wagnerian singers... In Wagner you don’t just fall in love, you fall in love with your best friend’s wife, or with your twin sister or, simultaneously, with a virgin and a whore. Even when Wagnerian characters are young, their souls seem burdened with several generations of tragic back stories. Every character appears torn between irreconcilable impulses, every voice contends with an orchestra that churns like a storm-tossed ocean. Wagnerian singing demands more than a fine instrument and technique. It has to be terrifying." (http://www.nytimes.com/2006/08/27/arts/music/27schi.html?_r=1&pagewanted=print)

This really struck a chord with me in terms of my character work - terrifying is the word...

Nilsson's obituary (http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/obituaries/1507579/Birgit-Nilsson.html) gave me food for thought in terms of her background. There are also some wonderful stories about her diva tendencies!

I think I will start to base Diva's personality and history on Nilsson, and think of Maria Callas as physical inspiration - and see what happens...!