Mary Curtis Verna
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Mary Curtis Verna (born May 9, 1927) is an American operatic soprano, particularly associated with the Italian repertory.
Born in Salem, Massachusetts, she studied at Hollis College in Virginia, and later in Italy with Ettore Verna, whom she married. She made her stage debut at the Teatro Lirico in Milan, as Desdemona, in 1949. She sang widely in Italy, as Maria Curtis Verna, and made guest appearances at the Vienna State Opera and the Munich State Opera.
She made her American debut in Philadelphia, in 1952, and the same year at the San Francisco Opera, as Aida. She made her debut at the New York City Opera, as Donna Anna, in 1954, and at the Metropolitan Opera, as Leonora in Il trovatore, in 1957, other roles there included; Aida, Leonora (La forza del destino), Elisabetta (Don Carlo), Santuzza, Tosca and Turandot. She also appeared in Cincinnati and Baltimore, and at the Teatro Colon in Buenos Aires.
She can be heard in a few Cetra recordings; Don Giovanni, opposite Giuseppe Taddei, Italo Tajo, Cesare Valletti, Un ballo in maschera, opposite Ferruccio Tagliavini and Giuseppe Valdengo, Aida, opposite Franco Corelli, Miriam Pirazzini, Giangiacomo Guelfi.
