Labeled by both rodents and bats as La Voce d'Italia (trans: The Voice from Italy), the warm-hearted and long-lived Opera singer, Maria Boitano-Holloway, captured the public with her heavenly voice that thrums like a bell and her ability to pour all her emotions through song. Boitano-Holloway is also grandmother to Finnius Fidget Holloway whom, upon meeting him for the first time, mistook him to be her only son, Rupert Holloway, come back from the dead. When Fidget was searching for his family relatives, she was the first one to welcome her grandson to the family household with open arms.

Ms. Boitano-Holloway was born Maria Stella Pirone in Milan, Italy. She was raised in a musical/artistic-oriented family. Her father was a songwriter/composer and mandolin player, her mother was a singer in the Church choir, and her older sister Giuliana loved art and wanted to become a painter. Despite the familys exquisite talents however, it was hard for the Pirones to earn a living with them, since bats were considered by rodent society as low-class creatures. Most of her fathers songs were often rejected by critics because they didnt believe that a bat could write songs that good (even though a few select songs managed to get in). Guiliana, who tried to get into the Italian art-school, was also rejected for the same reasons. In short, the Pirone family was struggling to make ends meat. But the little Maria had a destiny. No matter how financially tough the times were, she was not one to give up without a fight.

Eight-year-old Maria received voice lessons from her mother and sang with her father while he played the mandolin. Often times, her father and she would sing for the local folk in the town square (as her voice attracted many ears) or for the elderly and sick folk in hospitals. Many of the elderly/sick folk described her voice as good medicine for the soul and mind. When she turned thirteen, Maria attended the church choir her mother sang in. By the time she was sixteen (1842), she tried out for the part of Luisa in La Morta di Roma. Although she wasnt accepted for the part at first, her strong determination, persistence, and drive eventually earned her the role she so desired. This marked the beginning of the Milan-born bats musical career.

The young Marias voice attracted many ears of both rodents and bats, including a Sicilian-born blacksmith bat named Lucio Boitano. Maria married Boitano in 1844 and had a son, Rudolfo (Rupert). She adapted the last name as her stage name. With Boitano's hard-earned money and Maria's voice, the Pirone family no longer felt the pressure of financial struggle. The operas that followed, La Natale, Il Uomo che Minnamoro, and La Famiglia di Napoli, earned her enough fame and money that she used some of it to help out her family whenever they needed it. The whole family ended up moving to Sicily. She continued her opera career there.

The marriage between Maria and Lucio Boitano seemed to work out well at first. But as time went on, Maria began to learn a few terrible secrets. Lucio Boitano was an alcoholic and had unpredictable fits of temper. He knocked any object over in fits of rage and came close to getting abusive with Maria. However, that wasnt the only thing that made Maria Boitano scared. She soon discovered that Lucio Boitano worked secretly as a criminal thug for a Sicilian network of organized crime (known today as the Italian Mafia). In fear of having her only son growing up in an environment of crime, she divorced Boitano. In addition to Boitanos behavior affecting Maria and her family, the Sicilian mob became such a threat to many citizens. Everyone feared for their lives and they feared it would spread throughout all of Italy. As a result, Maria, her family, and the remaining Boitanos, decided to flee to a safer country. Eventually, they landed in Liverpool, England.

In Liverpool, Maria Boitano continued with her musical career and met a mild-mannered clockmaker named Charles Holloway. Maria eventually married Holloway and her son was raised by him throughout childhood. Her son eventually moved to London, but was killed later on by false church officials, leaving a rather devastated Maria and Charles. It was at least a few weeks before Maria found the urge to get back on stage again. Maria Boitano found warmth, comfort, and satisfaction living with her new husband and family. She thought it best to remain with them. Little did she realize that she would run into her grandson Fidget years later while finishing up a song for rehearsal.

Maria Boitano is a good-natured woman whose life revolves around family. She still sings opera to this day.

References:

• Author unknown. Sito Ufficiale di Ornella Vanoni. May 25, 2005. September 4, 2005 http://www.ornellavanoni.it
• Author unknown. "Vanoni Ornella: Biography." Rai International Online: Vai al sito. September 4, 2005. Rai International Production. September 4, 2005 http://www.italica.rai.it/eng/principal/topics/bio/vanoni.htm

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