Great Singers, First Series: Faustina Bordoni to Henrietta Sontag

Before Taylor Swift and Kanye, before any pop star feud captured the headlines, two sopranos brought opera audiences to riots. Faustina Bordoni and Francesca Cuzzoni exploded onto the early 18th-century stage as fierce rivals, their vocal brilliance matched only by their public contempt for one another. Audiences picked sides with religious fervor; duels were nearly fought in their names. George T. Ferris captures this combustible world in biographical sketches that revive the forgotten stars who turned opera into a spectacle of celebrity culture. From Bordoni's voluptuous voice to Henrietta Sontag's remarkable career despite tuberculosis, Ferris maps the extraordinary demands placed on these performers: to entertain, to excel, and to endure the brutal weight of public devotion. Written in the late 19th century as an act of preservation, this collection reminds us that the drama of opera was never confined to the stage.