{"id":45799,"date":"2024-07-30T12:19:02","date_gmt":"2024-07-30T10:19:02","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/150f8b9a-b0a6-46da-9783-6f2692c5895b"},"modified":"2024-07-30T13:07:19","modified_gmt":"2024-07-30T11:07:19","slug":"dont-talk-to-me-about-rules-dear-i-make-the-goddamn-rules-the-great-divas-were-goddesses-and-we-forgave-them-everything","status":"publish","type":"rss_feed","link":"https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/bbcmusicmagazine\/rss_feed\/dont-talk-to-me-about-rules-dear-i-make-the-goddamn-rules-the-great-divas-were-goddesses-and-we-forgave-them-everything\/","title":{"rendered":"\u2018Don\u2019t talk to me about rules, dear. I make the goddamn rules\u2019: the great divas were goddesses, and we forgave them everything"},"content":{"rendered":"

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By <\/p>

Published: Tuesday, 30 July 2024 at 10:19 AM<\/p>

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Last year, to mark the 100th anniversary of Maria Callas<\/a>\u2019s death, I found myself thinking about a word that, in her day, was still used as an accolade for women performers, especially opera singers, at the very top of their profession. Whereas today it\u2019s become an all-purpose term of abuse applied to just about anybody who exhibits haughty behaviour. What do we mean by ‘diva’, and who were the great opera divas?<\/strong><\/p>

The word \u2018diva\u2019 means goddess in Latin. And until our own era it meant goddess in showbiz too. In fact, Callas\u2019s fans nicknamed her La Divina, the divine \u2013 the ultimate diva. It implied not just incredible talent but something perhaps even more powerful: a charismatic force that reached out and mysteriously touched the hearts of millions.<\/p>