Monica Bellucci started her career as a fashion model for Dolce & Gabbana and Dior. She made a big change to American and French movies, and in 1991, she made her debut in the Italian comedy La Riffa. Bellucci is a versatile actress who has played many different roles, such as Persephone in The Matrix Reloaded and The Matrix Revolutions (2003) and Mary Magdalene in The Passion of the Christ (2004). Even at 51, she starred in The Man Who Sold His Skin in 2020.
Now 58, Monica Bellucci made her acting debut in Letters and Memoirs. Since the drama first opened in 2019 at the Théatre Marigny in Paris, she didn’t think it would become a worldwide hit. Initially, she confesses being nervous about accepting the position.
“I was scared, of course. First time on stage!” She said the letters and memoirs were so full of passion and sensitivity that it seemed like she was touching her soul through the pages.
As she depicts the new Maria Callas, under the direction of Tom Volf and with the accompaniment of the Wordless Music Orchestra, she reads letters and texts by Callas that have never been published before, completing the singer’s life narrative. She could never say no when Volf qualified her to “be part of the project” since “the letters were so lovely.”
Bellucci confirmed that Maria Callas’ “duality moved her.” Moreover, she described Callas as the Dona, Diva, and Divine—a lady with a pure heart who caved to grief and heartbreak.
Maria Anna Cecilia Sophie Kalogeropoulou is more popularly known as opera diva Maria Callas. She spent her childhood in New York and was introduced to opera in Italy, which led to her upward climb to worldwide success. But her path to stardom was invaded by humiliation, love, and personal sorrow.
Born in New York City in December 1923, Callas returned to Greece with her family and became an international celebrity in Italy. She is deemed one of the most influential and prominent opera singers of the 20th century.
She achieved high marks for her bel canto technique, vocal range, and dramatic interpretations from reviewers. She was dubbed “the Divine One” because of her exceptional singing and acting skills.
One of many scandals that marred the latter portion of her career was her secret love affair with Aristotle Onassis while still married to her husband, Giovanni Battista Meneghini.
Callas divorced Meneghini in 1966 after she renounced her U.S. citizenship at the American Embassy in Paris.
Callas, after her renunciation, would be deemed a Greek citizen solely because, at the time in Greece, only Greek citizens could lawfully marry inside the Greek Orthodox Church. Due to her Roman Catholic wedding in Greece, her divorce was finalized.
In 1968, Onassis dumped Callas for Jacqueline Kennedy, officially breaking up with her.
Callas died of a heart attack at 53 in September 1977, having spent most of her last years living in seclusion in Paris.
Bellucci said, “Because beauty merits risks,” when asked why she took such a risk by playing Callas in her debut theatrical act.
Belluci added that there was something so personal, so lyrical, about this endeavor that she thought, “it’s going to be a big risk.” However, she believes that people deserve its beauty. Despite her anxiety, she told herself to provide love, thinking that nothing wrong could happen to her.
After its premiere in New York, Callas’ home city, Letters And Memoirs, toured internationally, making stops in London, Rome, Athens, Los Angeles, and Milan.