Vilnius Festival 2016 features glamorous soprano Angela Gheorghiu

The Vilnius Festival commences on June 3 with a spectacular concert featuring the world’s most famous and glamorous soprano, Romanian Angela Gheorghiu, who has a career spanning some 25 years. With a voice which could split the Heavens and her smouldering beauty, Gheorghiu will make the evening a once in a lifetime event. She has performed in world-class venues such as The Royal Opera House in London, The Metropolitan Opera in New York, and La Scala in Milano, as well as numerous opera houses and concert venues across the world.

She is perhaps best known for her roles as Puccini’s leading ladies, notably Floria Tosca (“Tosca”) and Mimi (“La boheme”) as well as the role she can call her own, Violetta in Verdi’s “La Traviata,” which propelled her to stardom in Covent Garden. Her tremendous vocal range also includes mezzo-soprano roles such as Carmen.

At the opening concert, she will be joined by another famous Romanian opera singer, the tenor Marius Brenciu, who made his international debut in 1997 and has also performed in opera houses across the world as well as being the first Romanian to win the BBC Cardiff Singer of the World competition. The evening will be conducted by Ciprian Teodorascu, also from Romania. Amongst the varied programme are duets, arias, and overtures from Puccini, Verdi, Bizet, Boito, Tchaikovsky, Donizetti, as well as Cilea, Catalani, and Lehar.

The patron of the concert will be Gediminas Kuprevicius and features the LNOBT symphony orchestra.