Maria Callas: Today marks the birthday of the "divina"

On December 2, 1923, the leading Greek soprano Maria Callas was born in New York, her musical talent becoming apparent from the earliest years of her life. 

After her parents divorced in 1937, Maria returned with her mother and sister to Greece, where she continued her musical studies at the National Conservatory. Three years later, she made her first professional appearance at the Athens Opera House as Beatrice in the operetta "Boccaccio," and in 1947 she made her international debut with Ponchielli's "Giaconda" in Verona, Italy.

That same year, she met Italian industrialist Battista Meneghini, whom she married in 1949 and who contributed significantly to the takeoff of her career in the 1950s. Her performances on the world's most important opera stages, such as La Scala in Milan, the Royal Opera House in London, the Metropolitan Opera in New York, and the Paris Opera, captivated audiences and critics alike, earning her the title "divina" (divine).

1959 was a landmark year in her life. Invited along with her husband and other distinguished guests, she took part in a summer cruise in the Mediterranean on Aristotle Onassis' yacht, the Christina. Although Callas and Onassis had met two years earlier at a social event, this cruise marked the beginning of a stormy romantic relationship. Onassis flirted almost openly with the soprano, resulting in rapid developments, as immediately after the end of the trip, the shipowner separated from his wife Tina Livanos and Callas left Meneghini.

What followed were approximately ten years of an intense relationship, marked by passion but also frequent separations, as Callas sought stability and Onassis, with his volatile character, was unable to provide it. At the same time, her voice gradually began to decline, marking the downward trajectory of her career.

In 1968, Callas learned from television that Onassis was going to marry Jackie Kennedy. The blow was great and she never got over it, despite the fact that they continued to meet. The death of Aristotle Onassis on March 15, 1975, plunged her even further into loneliness and grief. On September 16, 1977, the "divina" passed away in Paris after suffering a heart attack.

On the occasion of today's anniversary of Maria Callas' birth, the Museum presents two photographs (Floros Brothers Archive – Nikos L. Floros) from that cruise, an event that had a decisive impact on her life.

* To the right of M. Callas is Lady Clementine Churchill, wife of Winston Churchill.