1. Angela Gheorghiu was catapulted to international stardom after starring as Violetta in Verdi's La traviata at Covent Garden in 1994.
49 Facts About Angela Gheorghiu
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Angela Gheorghiu 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.
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Angela Gheorghiu has made substantial discography primarily with EMI Classics and Decca, and holds several Gramophone Awards and honorary doctorates.
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Four years later, after Elena's surgeon husband, Andrei Dan, died, Angela Gheorghiu adopted their daughter, Ioana, who studied in the University of Kent and has lived in London since.
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Angela Gheorghiu 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.
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Angela Gheorghiu made her international debut at the Theater Basel in 1991, performing Adina in L'elisir d'amore.
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Angela Gheorghiu became a regular guest singer at the Royal Opera, featuring in consecutive seasons in various opera productions such as Puccini's Turandot, Don Giovanni, Carmen, L'elisir d'amore, Romeo et Juliette, The Tales of Hoffmann.
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Angela Gheorghiu made guest appearances at the Paris Opera and Salzburg Festival.
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Angela Gheorghiu was additionally cast in two opera films: Tosca as the title role, and Romeo et Juliette as Juliette.
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Angela Gheorghiu starred in as Magda in Nicolas Joel's new production of La rondine, which premiered on 7 May 2002, at the London Royal Opera.
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Angela Gheorghiu was invited as a performing artist at the 2003 Nobel Peace Prize Concert.
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In March 2003, Angela Gheorghiu starred in Gounod's Faust as Marguerite at the Metropolitan Opera, but withdrew from final performances citing security concerns due to the Iraq War.
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Angela Gheorghiu's performance was an overall success, although because the famous Zeffirelli 1964 production, which was designed for Maria Callas, was replaced, there was comparison between the Toscas of Gheorghiu and Callas.
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Angela Gheorghiu gave performances at the Teatro Regio di Torino, Los Angeles Opera, Deutsche Oper Berlin, Teatro dell'Opera di Roma.
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Angela Gheorghiu took part in the "Divas in Beijing" concert series held during the 2008 Summer Olympics.
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Angela Gheorghiu then premiered a new Faust at the Vienna State Opera.
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In November 2010, Angela Gheorghiu made her role debut in a new production of Cilea's Adriana Lecouvreur at the Covent Garden Royal Opera House to critical success.
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In July 2011, Angela Gheorghiu sang the title role in Tosca at the Royal Opera House conducted by Antonio Pappano which was released on DVD and Blu-ray, and the following September returned there for the revival of Faust, which was broadcast live in cinemas all over the world.
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In 2012, Angela Gheorghiu was invited as the guest performer at the Vienna Opera Ball.
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Angela Gheorghiu returned for a second master class in 2016.
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Angela Gheorghiu returned to the Met in December 2014 to perform Mimi in La boheme to great critical acclaim, opposite Michael Fabiano.
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In October 2015, Angela Gheorghiu appeared in Australia for the first time, performing in two exceptional gala concerts at the Sydney Opera House and at Hamer Hall, Arts Centre Melbourne.
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In November 2015, Angela Gheorghiu sang at the Elena Obraztsova Opera Ball at the Bolshoi Theatre in Moscow.
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In 2016, Angela Gheorghiu returned in the title role of Puccini's Tosca at the Royal Opera House and received great critical acclaim.
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Angela Gheorghiu was scheduled to appear in 5 performances, but sang in a total of 7 performances.
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Angela Gheorghiu returned as Tosca at the Vienna State Opera alongside Jonas Kaufmann and Bryn Terfel in April 2016.
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In September 2016, Angela Gheorghiu performed in Tosca at the Berlin State Opera with "loud and prolonged ovation".
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Angela Gheorghiu performed there in Adriana Lecouvreur in February 2017.
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In February 2021, Angela Gheorghiu performed in aid of New York's Metropolitan Opera musicians, deprived of their pay because of the Coronavirus-related cancellations of their performances.
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In September 2021 was released last studio album Juno to Jupiter by Vangelis in which Angela Gheorghiu performed on three compositions representing Greek-Roman Goddess Hera-Juno.
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In February 2022, Angela Gheorghiu celebrated her 30th anniversary with the Royal Opera House, reprising Tosca to great critical acclaim.
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Angela Gheorghiu met tenor Roberto Alagna, her co-star in La boheme at the Royal Opera, in 1992.
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Angela Gheorghiu divorced in the same year, but retained his surname due to the musical background of the family, with whom she still maintained a good relationship.
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However, Angela Gheorghiu claimed in an interview with Corriere della Sera that it was she that filed the divorce and that he wanted to get back together.
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Angela Gheorghiu has been in a relationship with Romanian dentist Mihai Ciortea, who is 22 years her junior, since autumn 2013.
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On rare occasion, Angela Gheorghiu has had difficult relationships with opera house managements and directors.
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In 1996, Angela Gheorghiu was cast as Micaela in a new production of Bizet's Carmen, opposite Waltraud Meier and Placido Domingo at the Metropolitan Opera.
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Angela Gheorghiu then resumed the performances with the wig entirely covered by the hood of her cape.
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In September 2007, Angela Gheorghiu was dismissed from Lyric Opera of Chicago's production of La boheme by General Manager William Mason, for missing rehearsals and costume fittings, and generally "unprofessional" behavior.
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Angela Gheorghiu won the title of Female Artist of the Year at the Classic Brit Awards in 2001 and 2010.
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In 2002, Angela Gheorghiu won the Echo Klassik Award for "Female Singer of the Year".
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In 2004, Angela Gheorghiu won the Best Opera Recording in the Victoires de la musique classique for Bizet's Carmen issued by EMI Classics.
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Angela Gheorghiu won Diapason d'Or Awards, Choc du Monde de la Musique in France, Cecilia Prize in Belgium, the Italian Musica e dischi, Foreign Lyric Production Award, the United States Critics' Award.
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In 2013, the DVD of Adriana Lecouvreur released by Decca where Angela Gheorghiu plays the title role won at the International Classical Music Awards for Best DVD Performance.
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Angela Gheorghiu received the "Victoire d'Honneur" award in the 2018 Victoires de la musique classique, and "Premio Puccini" award from the Foundation of Festival Puccini in the same year.
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Angela Gheorghiu was honoured with the vermeil Medal of the City of Paris, and was appointed Officier and Chevalier of the Ordre des Arts et des Lettres by the French Ministry of Culture.
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In December 2010, Angela Gheorghiu was presented the Order of the Star of Romania in the grade of Commander.
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In October 2012, Angela Gheorghiu received the Nihil Sine Deo royal decoration from King Michael I, honoring her contribution to promoting Romanian culture in the world.
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Angela Gheorghiu holds honorary doctorates from George Enescu National University of Arts, Gheorghe Dima Music Academy, University of Bucharest.