Maria Callas, one of the most iconic opera singers in history, was not just renowned for her extraordinary vocal talent but also for her dramatic personal transformation. Her career began in 1947 when opera singers were expected to be overweight. But at 238 pounds, she reportedly felt miserable, per The Guardian. When the director Luchino Visconti told her she had to lose 66 pounds before he would work with her, she dropped a reported 88 pounds.
The new biopic Maria, starring Angelina Jolie, has brought renewed attention to the life and career of the Greek-American opera singer. Jolie reportedly undertook seven months of operatic tuition to sing at the film’s climax. The film follows Callas as she moves to Paris after years in the public eye and is labeled as a “creative reimagining” of what this time was like in Callas’ life. With all of the attention on the biopic, it’s understandable to wonder about the soprano’s life and what happened to her.
In the early 1950s, Callas faced increasing pressure in both her professional and personal life, which led her to undergo a significant weight loss journey. In this article, we explore how Maria Callas navigated her weight loss, the physical and emotional challenges she faced, and how this journey influenced her career, her self-esteem, and ultimately her personal growth.
Early Life and Career Struggles
Callas came from a humble background and was judged fat and unattractive by her own family. Maria Callas’ career was built on unparalleled vocal skill, but the pressure of maintaining a specific image for the opera world took a toll on her. During her early years, Callas struggled with her weight and was often criticized by critics for not fitting the physical ideals expected of women in opera. Her willpower was founded on insecurity.
In a world where appearance often equated to success, the pressure to conform to a certain body type was immense. Many of Callas’ critics labeled her too “large” for her roles, and the stress of these comments only compounded her desire to change her body. “The critics were relentless. It felt as though my body, not just my voice, was under constant scrutiny,” Callas once remarked.
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The Decision to Transform
Callas’ transformation began in 1953 when she decided to focus on both her health and appearance. After years of trying to balance her career, relationships, and public expectations, she made the decision to lose weight-not just to meet the industry’s standards but to regain control of her life. “I was told that I wouldn’t be taken seriously unless I lost weight. It was then that I decided to take my health seriously,” Callas later reflected.
She wanted to look like Audrey Hepburn, who was known for her waifish appearance, according to History. She began to overhaul her eating habits and lifestyle, seeking advice from nutritionists and doctors to help her achieve the desired weight loss.
Weight Loss Strategies
Maria Callas’ weight loss strategy involved a rigorous and strict diet plan that focused on low-calorie foods. One of the central components of her eating routine was a low-calorie diet, which consisted primarily of salads and chicken. “I decided to eat simply: chicken and salad. It was low in calories but rich in the nutrients I needed to fuel my body for those long performances,” Callas explained.
One of the most extreme aspects of Callas’ transformation was her use of therapeutic fasting and dietary supplements. It is believed that she worked with physicians who monitored her weight loss and suggested various dietary supplements and potentially even used treatments like tapeworms to aid in weight loss, although this remains speculative. According to legend, Callas's enormous weight loss came about because she deliberately swallowed a tapeworm. Tosi, president of the International Maria Callas Association, said she did have to have treatment for worms, possibly because of her fondness for raw steak, but she dropped the weight by following a diet based on consuming iodine. 'It was a dangerous treatment because it affected the central nervous system and changed her metabolism, but she turned into a beautiful swan,' said Tosi.
Along with a strict diet, Callas incorporated exercise into her daily routine. As a professional opera singer, her schedule was demanding, and long rehearsals or performances didn’t leave much time for physical activity. At the time, Callas was advised to engage in light physical activity, focusing on walking and some basic aerobic exercise to increase her metabolic rate. This helped her burn calories while maintaining the energy required for her demanding career. “It wasn’t just about losing weight for the stage-it was about feeling physically strong. I wanted to carry the weight of my voice and my body with grace,” Callas said.
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Emotional and Physical Toll
Losing weight at such a rapid pace had an emotional toll on Callas, especially as she struggled with anxiety related to public perception and her body image. Despite her success on stage, Callas often found herself feeling like an outsider in the world of high society. She was deeply sensitive to the comments about her appearance and was often criticized for her weight, regardless of her immense talent. Callas used her weight loss as a way to combat the anxiety she felt from the criticism. “The weight loss gave me confidence, but it didn’t come without sacrifice.
By 1954, Maria Callas had shed an astonishing 80 pounds, bringing her weight down from 200 pounds to 120 pounds. The transformation was not just physical; it marked a shift in her career, as Callas was able to land more roles and become the ultimate embodiment of the “tragic diva” archetype. Despite the physical toll that her dramatic weight loss had on her body, it solidified Callas as one of the most iconic figures in opera history.
Impact on Her Voice and Career
Regardless of critical opinion of her, a deterioration in Callas’s voice was noted as early as 1956 when she was just 33. What prompted the demise of this iconic voice has been a subject of hot debate in the operatic world. Many have credited this decline to her heartbreak at losing Aristotle Onassis to Jackie Kennedy. Others have claimed that it was simply the result of going in too strong, too soon, in her performance. Many of Callas’s earlier roles had been very technically demanding - and may have proved injurious. Her notable technique focused on intonation to add dramatic effect to her singing, and may also have been responsible for hardening her vocal cords.
Callas’s diet may also have had an effect. Modelling herself on the grace of Audrey Hepburn, she lost a staggering amount of weight (over 35kg) in her twenties. There was even speculation that she may have ingested tapeworms to do so. This dramatic weight loss, like that achieved through rapid diets of the modern day, might also have caused her to shed muscle mass. The voice is as much an output of muscle action as, say, flexing a bicep. The movement and vibration of the vocal cords are determined by the action of different groups of muscles in the larynx (or voicebox). These muscles stretch the cords or tense them, like the strings on a harp or violin. They can also make them open or close. In losing laryngeal muscle, her extreme dieting may have been responsible for her weakened voice.
Later Life and Health Issues
Another clue may lie with a report that was published more than 25 years after Callas’s death by a doctor who consulted with her in her autumn days, living in Paris. What she was demonstrating was the roughened, swollen, violet-marked hands associated with the condition dermatomyositis. This is a connective tissue disease that causes inflammation in both skin and muscle. National Library of Medicine. The condition causes symptoms like muscle weakness and soreness, problems swallowing, a skin rash, and shortness of breath.
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Alongside the same purple rash on her neck, her stooped posture and weakened voice (otherwise called dysphonia) were hallmarks of this illness. Dermatomyositis can also impact the vocal cords, and caused Maria to lose her powerful voice. After treating the inflammation with the steroid drug prednisolone, Callas noted some improvement.
Maria suffered with addiction to several medications. In the 1950s, her husband connected her with a doctor who gave her “liquid vitamins,” which was a code phrase for speed, according to History. Maria eventually started dating Aristotle Onassis, who History says introduced her to pentobarbital and methaqualone/antihistamine-and she became addicted to both.
Maria’s final performance was in July 1965 in Tosca at Covent Garden. She was just 41 at the time. Aristotle died in 1975, and Maria withdrew from public life afterward. While it’s been said that she died of a broken heart, it’s more likely that her drug addiction and health issues contributed to her heart attack, per Biography. Maria suffered a heart attack in September 1977, which killed her. She was cremated and her ashes were placed in the Père Lachaise Cemetery, per the English National Opera. Her ashes were stolen and later recovered, before they were scattered over the Aegean Sea in 1979.Callas died in Paris, in 1977, of a heart attack. She was 53 years old.
The Recipes She Never Ate
When she lost an incredible 40 kilograms in one year Maria Callas transformed herself from fat and dowdy opera singer into svelte and elegant diva. The pressure to stay thin was tremendous for the food-loving soprano, whose newly published personal papers show how she tried to comfort herself during her tormented battles with her weight.
Callas began a habit of meticulous recipe collecting, scribbling down instructions for her favourite dishes as she travelled the world. She would 'steal' recipes from famous cooks in hotels, writing them on scraps of paper and stuffing them into her handbag. But they were for food she herself would never eat. 'She loved food, especially cakes and puddings, but lived mostly on steak and salad,' said Callas expert Bruno Tosi, who is allowing the handwritten recipes to be published for the first time in Italy. 'Writing down these recipes was a vicarious pleasure because she rarely allowed herself to taste any of them.'
She never ate pasta and favoured meals of rare beef or steak tartare. All the time - and during her love affair with the Greek shipping magnate Aristotle Onassis - she collected recipes: tomato omelettes, veal l'oriental, besciamel sauce with capers, mustard sauce, golden pound cake, chocolate beignets and a cake she called 'my cake' which was heavy and laden with sugar. The recipes were sent back to her personal cook, who served them at Callas's dinner parties. While her guests tucked in, Callas ate only a few morsels. She rarely drank wine, but liked champagne because it was less calorific. 'She was like many women, struggling her entire life with her weight,' said Tosi.