Lady Gaga to Lady Macbeth
From humous diva to dark Shakespearean heroine, Asmik Grigorian embodies the many facets of opera.
A Diva is Born. Under this intriguing title, Asmik Grigorian presents herself at the Großes Festspielhaus this year. The fact that her performance is billed as a “lied recital” is “funny”, the soprano says – she herself prefers to call it a “show”, as she will perform not only works by famous opera composers, but also by Lady Gaga and Sting, an addition to stories from her life.
The Lithuanian soprano, whom The New York Times labelled “one of the fiercest dramatic talents in the field”, mesmerizes audiences with her intense acting skills, versatility and rich, dark voice. At the Salzburg Festival, where she had her international breakthrough, she has appeared numerous times. For example last summer in Sergei Prokofiev’s The Gambler and of course in 2018 as a memorable Salome. She is a popular guest artist at the Vienna State Opera, most recently in her role debut as Elisabetta in Don Carlo, at the Metropolitan Opera and the Teatro alla Scala.
Retrospective as a comedy show. In “A Diva is Born”, Grigorian now looks back on her development, reflecting important stations of her career – and taking a self-ironic approach. “I would call it a comedy show about myself, not entirely without sad moments, but conceived mainly as entertainment,” Grigorian told Die Presse. The title alludes to the film A Star is Born, and the evening aims to tell “a short version of my life”. The show involves additional amusing comments found on the internet. “My pianist Hyung-ki Joo also contributes a lot, making sure that the stories we tell come across as impressive and funny.” The programme includes works by Georges Bizet, Giacomo Puccini, Sting and Lady Gaga. That’s all Grigorian is willing to reveal in advance: “The amusing thing is that we want to surprise people here. Of course there is a reason I sing this or that, and there is a red thread running through it all.” The fact that she is leaving so much uncertain “also reflects the courage of the Salzburg Festival, just letting me do what I think is good. It makes me nervous, excited and curious at the same time,” Grigorian admits. She did give a performance with the same title at the Vienna State Opera, but “in Vienna it wasn’t finalized. Salzburg will see the premiere of this version. Hopefully, there will be many further performances of the show.”
Returning to the great role. Grigorian’s second great task this Salzburg Festival summer is her interpretation of Lady Macbeth in the revival of Giuseppe Verdi’s Macbeth, directed by Krzysztof Warlikowski and conducted by Philippe Jordan. She says she is looking forward to returning to the role and to collaborating again with her colleagues: “It is always fascinating to see how a production develops after a break.” Grigorian worked with Warlikowski already on Elektra, and she calls their collaboration a “special pleasure”.
To Grigorian, who is known and admired for her ability to portray highly differentiated characters, Lady Macbeth “is an exceedingly interesting role. Generally, I love interpreting negative characters, bringing out their human side in detail. I have never believed in pure evil or pure good in humans. I want to show human qualities in every character, even if the role I am playing is traditionally considered diabolic.” Today, Grigorian readily admits that when she first sang Lady Macbeth, she was “afraid of the coloraturas and the final aria. But now that I’ve even sung Norma, Lady Macbeth seems less challenging than it did a few years ago. My repertoire just keeps developing, and I am curious to see where the road will lead me.”
Theresa Steininger
Translation: Alexa Nieschlag
First published on 31.05.2025 in Die Presse Kultur Spezial: Salzburger Festspiele