BEVERLY SILLS

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BEVERLY SILLS

Beverly Sills in 1956, photo by Carl Van Vechten
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Beverly Sills (May 25, 1929 – July 2, 2007) was a Jewish American operatic soprano who enjoyed a successful career during the 1950s through the 1970s. Although she sang a wide repertoire that encompassed everything from Handel and Mozart to Puccini, Massenet, Wagner, and Verdi, she was particularly famous for her performances in coloratura soprano roles in operas around the world and on recordings. Sills was largely associated with the operas of Gaetano Donizetti, of which she performed and recorded many roles. Her signature roles include the title role in Lucia di Lammermoor, the title role in Manon, Marie in La Fille du Régiment, the three heroines in Les contes d'Hoffmann, Rosina in The Barber of Seville, and Violetta in La Traviata.

After retiring from singing in 1980, she became the general manager of the New York City Opera. In 1994, she became the Chairman of Lincoln Center and then, in 2002, of the Metropolitan Opera, stepping down in 2005. Sills lent her celebrity to further her charity work for the prevention and treatment of birth defects.