Anna Netrebko

Anna Yur'yevna Netrebko (Russian: Анна Юрьевна Нетребко; born 18 September 1971 in Krasnodar, Russia) is a Russian operatic soprano who currently resides in Austria.

While a student at the conservatory of Saint Petersburg, Netrebko worked as a floor cleaner and did odd jobs at St. Petersburg's Mariinsky Theatre (home of the Kirov Opera)[1]. Later, she auditioned for the Mariinsky Theatre, where conductor Valery Gergiev recognized her from her prior work in the theater. He subsequently became her vocal mentor.[2] Under Gergiev's guidance, Netrebko made her operatic stage debut at the Mariinsky as Susanna in Le Nozze di Figaro. She went on to sing many prominent roles with the Kirov Opera, including Amina in La Sonnambula, Pamina in Die Zauberflöte, Rosina in Il Barbiere di Siviglia, and Lucia in Lucia di Lammermoor.

In March 2006, Netrebko applied to become an Austrian citizen, receiving her citizenship in late July[3]. According to an interview in the Austrian weekly news, she will live in Vienna and Salzburg. This has led to some backlash in Russia. Netrebko cites the cumbersome and humiliating process of obtaining visas (as a Russian citizen) for her many performances abroad as the main reason for obtaining Austrian citizenship.[4]