Angela Gheorghiu (; ; born 7 September 1965) is a Romanian soprano, especially known for her performances in the operas of Puccini and Verdi, widely recognised by critics and opera lovers as one of the greatest sopranos of all time.
Embarking her career in 1990, she made her Royal Opera House and Vienna State Opera debuts in 1992, followed by New York's Metropolitan Opera debut in 1993. She was catapulted to international stardom after starring as Violetta in Verdi's La traviata at Covent Garden in 1994. Her signature roles include Mimì in La bohème, Magda in La rondine, the title roles in Tosca and Adriana Lecouvreur. She had performed frequently with French tenor Roberto Alagna, whom she first met in 1992 and married in 1996, in concerts and opera productions until their eventual divorce in 2013.
Her voice is described as "...the most instantly recognizable and interesting soprano voice of our time. A liquid instrument of great lyrical beauty with gleaming spun-gold high notes, but a dark, vibrant contralto range, reminiscent of Maria Callas.", and she is considered "the world's most glamorous opera star".
She has made substantial discography primarily with EMI Classics (absorbed into Warner Classics in 2013) and Decca, and holds several Gramophone Awards and honorary doctorates.
Early life and family
Angela Burlacu was born in Adjud, Romania, to a seamstress mother and train driver father. Along with her sister Elena, she sang opera music from an early age. At age 14, she began to study singing at the Ciprian Porumbescu Conservatory, primarily under Mia Barbu. Her graduation in 1990 followed the overthrow of Nicolae Ceaușescu the previous year, enabling her to seek an international career immediately. Her graduation exam took place at the Cluj-Napoca Romanian National Opera as Mimì in La bohème in 1990, the same year she won third prize in the Belvedere International Singing Competition.
In 1996, Elena died in a car crash. Angela's parents then separated and her father became a monk, living in a monastery in Mount Athos. Four years later, after Elena's surgeon husband, Andrei Dan, died, Angela adopted their daughter, Ioana, who studied in the University of Kent and has lived in London since. She decided not to have a child of her own in fear of the probable voice change after pregnancy and that raising Ioana was already a satisfying experience for her.
Career
Early career (1991–2002) Gheorghiu made her international debut at the Theater Basel in 1991, performing Adina in L'elisir d'amore. In 1992, she debuted at the Royal Opera, London in one performance as Zerlina in Don Giovanni opposite Bryn Terfel as Masetto, and then her official debut as Mimì in La bohème. In the same year, she debuted at the Vienna State Opera in the role of Adina, and was engaged as Nannetta in Falstaff in the same season. She became a regular guest singer at the Royal Opera, featuring in consecutive seasons in various opera productions such as Puccini's Turandot (Liù), Don Giovanni (Zerlina), Carmen (Micaëla), L'elisir d'amore (Adina), Roméo et Juliette (Juliette), The Tales of Hoffmann (Antonia). In 1994, she starred in the premiere of a new production of Massenet's Chérubin. In November 1994, she debuted as Violetta in Richard Eyre's new production of La traviata conducted by Georg Solti at the Royal Opera House. The sensation prompted BBC Two to clear its regular schedule on 8 December to broadcast the live performance, which led her to international stardom.
In 1993, she made her Metropolitan Opera debut in La bohème. Since then, she has returned to the company for La bohème, Puccini's Turandot, Carmen, L'elisir d'amore, Roméo et Juliette. In 1999, she was featured in Roméo et Juliette at the Lyric Opera of Chicago, and in Mascagni's L'amico Fritz as Suzel at the Opéra de Monte-Carlo. She was featured in Michael Jackson's MJ & Friends in Munich. Later in the year, she sang at the Richard Tucker Opera Gala, and performed at the reopening of the Covent Garden Royal Opera House. In 2001, she performed in La Fenice's reopening concert, "Concert in Honour of the President of the Republic" at the Teatro Malibran. She also made guest appearances at the Paris Opera (Micaëla, Violetta, Mimì) and Salzburg Festival (Violetta, Juliette). Gheorghiu was additionally cast in two opera films: Tosca (2001; directed by Benoît Jacquot) as the title role, and Roméo et Juliette (2002; directed by Barbara Willis Sweete) as Juliette.