The Maria Callas Museum is a biographical museum dedicated to the renowned Greek soprano Maria Callas. It opened on 26 October 2023, and is situated in Athens, Greece.
Μουσείο Μαρία Κάλλας | |
Established | 2023 |
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Location | 44 Mitropoleos Street, Athens, Greece |
Owner | Municipality of Athens |
Website | https://mariacallasmuseum.gr/en/ |
In 2000, the Municipality of Athens took part at an auction of Callas' personal objects, thus initiating a Callas-themed collection, with the initial prospect of creating an exhibition for the 2004 Summer Olympics.[1] In 2010, the Municipality of Athens bought a three storey neoclassical building of the interwar period situated on 44 Mitropoleos Street, for 7 million euros.[2] Three years later, a previous plan to house a theatrical museum at the building failed, and thus the idea for transferring the Callas collection there was born.[2] The related museologic study by Erato Koutsoudaki, Andromache Gazi and Alexandros Charkiolakis was first presented in 2014.[2] Eventually, the Maria Callas Museum was inaugurated a decade later, on Thursday, 26 October 2023.[3][4] For the 2023 – 2028 period, its administration was assigned to the administerial board of the Technopolis cultural venue.[5]
The museum includes numerous personal objects, operatic costumes[6] and personal haute couture garments, some created by Biki. According to the museum's co-designer, architect and museologist Erato Koutsoudaki, the museum's collection is not its greatest asset;[2][7] its exhibitions were designed on the basis of Callas' personality; they include her singing voice and interviews of hers.[2]
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