Prima donna

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In opera or commedia dell'arte, a prima donna (Italian: [ˈpriːma ˈdɔnna]; Italian for 'first woman'; pl.: prime donne) is the leading female singer in the company, the person to whom the prime roles would be given. The prima donna in opera was normally, but not necessarily, a soprano. The corresponding term for the male lead (usually a castrato in the 17th and 18th centuries, later a tenor) is primo uomo.. Prime donne often had grand off-stage personalities and were seen as demanding of their colleagues. Because of this, the term has spread in contemporary usage to refer to any person behaving in a demanding or temperamental fashion or having an inflated view of oneself.

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