Prima Donna

by Nancy Freedman

Benedickta Roland is one of the most spellbinding singers ever to electrify the operatic stage. A willful, capricious and gifted child, Benedickta is able to cope with her mother's suicide and her father's abandonment only through the love of her older brother, Mark. She rises from orphaned waif, discovered by a gentle church organist, through the years of training and struggle, to prima donna, the reigning star of La Scala and the Met, the toast of Milan, Rome, London and New York. Here is a woman so glorious her fans call her la divina, so dazzling men long to possess her. But behind the scenes of the voluptuous opera world, we see a different Benedickta: a vulnerable woman mourning a death, suffering the pain of leaving the man she loves, torn between her demanding music and her equally demanding heart. Benedickta's affair with one of the world's most successful men leads her to a shattering and unexpected realization.

560 pages, Hardcover

First published January 1, 1981

About the author

Nancy Lois Mars Freedman, born in Chicago in 1920, was a professional dancer by the age of seven. She later became an actress, but her career was cut short by a heart condition. She married Benedict Freedman in 1941, just shy of her twenty-first birthday. They collaborated on Mrs. Mike while still in their twenties. Each would write a section and critique the other’s work. (In a previous discussion, June 2007, we learned that this is the method used by the mother and daughter team that makes up P. J. Tracy.) Nancy and Benedict did not write the sequels to Mrs. Mike (The Search for Joyful and Kathy Little Bird) until 2002 and 2004! Nancy authored several other books in the intervening years.

Reviews

[Jean · Rating 1 out of 5]

Sorry! I looked forward to reading this book as it was supposed to be about a good singer but it was a complete disappointment to me and I couldn't finish it.

[Franca Cinelli · Rating 5 out of 5]

Great book!