Francesca Sassu

Born in Sassari, Francesca Sassu studied voice at the Conservatory in her native town and subsequently attended masterclasses with outstanding singers and teachers as Raina Kabaivanska, Renato Bruson and Barbara Frittoli. She won the First Price in the International Competition “A. Belli” of the Teatro Lirico Sperimentale di Spoleto where she debuted as Leonora in Verdi’s Oberto, Conte di San Bonifacio, a role she also performed for the Tokyo’s New National Theatre and for the Festival Verdi of the Teatro Regio di Parma under the direction of Antonello Allemandi (DVD Unitel Classica). Her career highlights in the Bel Canto repertoire include the title role in Bellini’s Norma both at the Teatro Filarmonico di Verona in a Francesco Ivan Ciampa/Hugo de Ana production, and at the Norwegian National Opera with Antonino Fogliani; Amenaide in Rossini’s Tancredi conducted by José Miguel Pérez-Sierra and directed by Pier Luigi Pizzi for the Teatro Petruzzelli in Bari; Adina in Donizetti’s Elisir d’amore at the Teatro Verdi di Sassari and Teatro Sociale di Como. Francesca made her debut as Violetta in Beijing’s Forbidden City Concert Hall and returned to the role at La Fenice in Robert Carsen’s staging of La Traviata, and at Teatro Petruzzelli in Bari in a new production by Hugo de Ana. She appeared as Amelia Grimaldi in Simon Boccanegra at the Hungarian State Opera Budapest and as Desdemona in Otello of which a documentary was made for Sky Classica HD.