What does the word Diva mean to you?
The dictionary defines it as the following:
1. a celebrated female opera singer or a famous female singer of popular music.
2. a self-important person who is temperamental and difficult to please (typically used of a woman).
Powerful women are often tarnished with the label diva as a way to bring them down a peg when they are simply being assertive.
So on Wednesday we decided it was time to claim it back and celebrate all things DIVA and treated March members to a gallery visit of the V&A's DIVA exhibition.
DIVA celebrates the power and creativity of iconic performers, exploring and redefining the role of 'diva' and how this has been subverted or embraced over time across opera, stage, popular music, and film.More than the sum of its parts, we were taken from the 1700s when women were first “allowed” to act on stage right through to the music and film titans of today.
What was striking was that whilst progress has been made, women are still fighting against gender stereotypes (and more).
After, we made a beeline to Cento for drinks to talk about what we had just explored.
Have you been to the exhibition? What did you think? Let us know!
