The Prima Donna and Opera, 1815-1930

This book is concerned not so much with the 'prima donna' as with prime donne: a group of working artists (sometimes famous but more often relativelyunknown and now long forgotten) and the circumstances of their professional lives. It attempts to locate these singers within a broader history, including not only the specificities of operatic stage practice but the life beyond the opera house - the social, cultural and political framing that shaped individual experience, artistic endeavour and audience reception. Rutherford addresses questions such as the multiple discourses on the image of the singer and their impact on the changing profile of the professional artist from figlia dell'arte at the beginning of the era to middle-class woman at the end
the aspect of the 'stage mother' and patronage
issues of vocal training and tuition
professional life in the operatic market-place
and performance (both vocal and dramatic) conventions and practices."