What is "prima donna"

Prima donna \Pri"ma don"na\; pl. E. Prima donnas, It. Prime Donne . [It., fr. primo, prima, the first + donna lady, mistress. See {Prime, a., and Donna.] The first or chief female singer in an opera.

1782, "principal female singer in an opera," from Italian prima donna "first lady," from Latin prima, fem. of primus "first" (see prime (adj.)) + domina "lady" (see dame). Meaning "temperamental person" first recorded 1834.

n. 1 (context opera English) The principal female singer or the leading lady. 2 A person who considers himself or herself much more important than others, has high expectations of others and becomes angry when his or her standards or demands are not met.

1. n. a vain and temperamental person

2. a distinguished female operatic singer; a female operatic star [syn: diva]

Prima Donna clipper ship card

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In opera or commedia dell'arte, a prima donna (plural: prime donne; Italian for "first lady") is the leading female singer in the company, the person to whom the prime roles would be given. The prima donna was normally, but not necessarily, a soprano. The corresponding term for the male lead (almost always a tenor) is primo uomo.

Prime donne often had grand off-stage personalities and were seen as demanding of their colleagues. From its original usage in opera, the term has spread in contemporary usage to refer to anyone behaving in a demanding or temperamental fashion or having an inflated view of oneself.

Prima Donna were the United Kingdom representatives in the Eurovision Song Contest 1980. The group comprised sisters Kate Robbins and Jane Robbins, Sally Ann Triplett, Danny Finn, Alan Coates and Lance Aston (brother of Jay Aston, who performed with Bucks Fizz, the following year's contest winners). Finn was a former member of The New Seekers and was married to fellow ex-Seeker Eve Graham. Robbins later embarked on a successful career as a comedian, impressionist and actress.

Prima Donna is an American rock and roll band from Los Angeles, featuring singer/ guitarist Kevin Preston (formerly of The Skulls), saxophonist/ keyboardist Aaron Minton, drummer David S. Field, and bassist "Lights Out" Levine. Although formed in 2003, the band did not release its first album until 2008.

Prima donna is a term used in opera, and is Italian for "first lady".

Prima donna may also refer to:

Prima Donna is an opera composed by Canadian-American singer-songwriter Rufus Wainwright to a French language libretto which he co-authored with Bernadette Colomine. It is about "a day in the life of an aging opera singer", anxiously preparing for her comeback in 1970s Paris, who falls in love with a journalist. It premiered at the Palace Theatre, Manchester on July 10, 2009 during the Manchester International Festival. The U.S. premiere was presented by New York City Opera at the Brooklyn Academy of Music on February 19, 2012.

In March 2014, Wainwright began raising funds via PledgeMusic to record a two-disc album recording of the opera.

Prima Donna is a song by British rock band Uriah Heep from their eighth studio album Return to Fantasy in 1975 and released as the first single from the album. The song was written by Ken Hensley, Mick Box, David Byron and Lee Kerslake and was sung by David Byron. The song was recorded in May 1975 in Lansdowne and Morgan Studios, London. The song reached number ten in Denmark and number three in Norway.

Prima Donna is a Dutch cheese brand of Vandersterre Groep. It competes with Parrano, a trademarked brand of Vandersterre's competitor Uniekaas Groep. Like Parrano it combines the flavour of aged Italian Parmesan with the pliant texture of Dutch Gouda cheese.

Prima Donna is a double album recording of Rufus Wainwright's 2009 opera of the same name, released internationally by the German classical record label Deutsche Grammophon ( Universal Music Group) on September 11, 2015 and on October 2, 2015 in Canada, Mexico, and the United States. The recording features performances by Janis Kelly, Kathryn Guthrie, Antonio Figueroa, Richard Morrison, the BBC Symphony Orchestra, and Jayce Ogren. The album's release coincides with Prima Donna: A Symphonic Visual Concert.

Prima Donna is a 1959 TV play broadcast by the Australian Broadcasting Corporation. It was an adaptation of an opera by Arthur Benjamin and was directed by Alan Burke. It was the first of several operas Burke would direct.

The play went for one hour and Burke only had nine hours of rehearsal.

Marie Tysoe later recalled:

That was conducted by Joseph Post. This was done live and we had a lot of trouble to see the conductor and also to please the producer with the camera positions. The orchestra was in the studio as well. It was easy to get out of sync if we did not see the conductor. It was very crowded in the studio.

Prima Donna (stylized as PRIMA DONNA) is the debut studio album by South Korean girl group Nine Muses, released on October 14, 2013 through Star Empire Entertainment. A majority of the album's production is by Han Jae-ho and Kim Seung-soo, also known as Sweetune, who have worked with the group since their 2011 single "Figaro".

In September 2013, the group announced that they will be starting a new promotional cycle with their first full-length album after the chuseok holidays. The album's track list was revealed on September 26, 2013. Various teaser images and jacket photos for Prima Donna were released in the first week of October, along with an audio preview of all eleven tracks on October 9, 2013. The album debuted at number seven on the Gaon Albums Chart.

Prima Donna's lead track, "Gun", contains retro influences with a western beat, featuring a brass and blues feel with an electronic guitar. The single charted on the Gaon charts at number sixteen.