Thank you, Manuel, I didn’t know these stories. They show that singing can be as funny as dangerous…
Callas’s myopia reminds me of this one:
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In the days before contact lenses, a very nearsighted soprano was singing the title role in Tosca. For the second act, where she stabs Scarpia, the diva instructed the prop master to place a knife at a specific spot on the table so she could pick it up at the right moment to attack the baritone. Either the knife was not placed according to her instructions, or she forgot where it was supposed to be. At any rate, as the tension grew, and she needed to grab the knife, she could not find it, and in desperation grabbed the nearest long, narrow object on the table — a banana — and lunged at Scarpia, stabbing him with the fruit. After he died, she intoned “E avanti a lui tremava tutta Roma,” and threw the squashed banana down.
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And about Tito Gobbi…..
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Tito Gobbi was fascinated since childhood by the dramatic power of Rigoletto’s first act ending, and he wanted to accentuate it with a spectacular fall from the steps. At the last rehearsal of the production conducted by Tullio Serafin, Gobbi yelled his “Ah, la maledizione” rolling down the entire set of stairs and falling heavily on the floor among his astonished colleagues. Maestro Serafin remained perfectly calm, and said: “Va benissimo per il circo Barnum, ma per Verdi è troppo” (It’s very good for Barnum Circus, but for Verdi it’s too much).
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In order to come back to the thread, about injuries, I’d like to indicate you this article:
http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/entertain...ts/2077833.stm
“Singer catches fire at Royal Opera” -
Soprano Susan Chilcott has escaped unharmed after her dress caught fire on stage at London's Royal Opera House…
