Ileana Cotrubaș

Ileana Cotrubaș was one of the most expressive singing actresses of her era. She specialized in operatic roles calling for a degree of pathos, such as Violetta, Ilia in Idomeneo, and Mélisande, but she also had a gift for comedy that was well expressed in roles such as Susanna in Le nozze di Figaro or Adina in L'elisir d'Amore. She held strong beliefs about staging, and more than once caused controversy by walking out of a production which she believed was inappropriate for the opera in question. While the majority of her career was in opera, she also sang sacred music, particularly Mozart, and gave the occasional lieder recital. Cotrubaș died in Vienna on August 20, 2026.