Anastasia Bartoli answers the Gramilano Questionnaire… singers’ edition!

Q&A

When did you start singing?

I have always sung, since I was a child, but I started to do it seriously when I was 23 years old.

Why did you start singing?

Singing has always been one of my greatest passions, but I decided to start studying canto lirico because at that time I literally received ‘a calling' and I could not go against it. Thus a profound vocation was born in me.

Which singer inspired you most when you were young?

My inspirational artist is my mother, Cecilia Gasdia.

Which singer do you most admire?

I am really in love with Ghena Dimitrova!!

What's your favourite role?

Lady Macbeth – a sweet charmer psycho murder woman.

What role have you never played but would like to?

Puccini's Manon Lescaut. ❤️

What's your favourite opera to watch?

Turandot.

Who is your favourite composer?

Sergei Rachmaninov.

Who is your favourite writer?

Homer.

Who is your favourite theatre or film director?

Ridley Scott.

Who is your favourite actor?

Ian McKellen.

Who is your favourite dancer?

Rudolf Nureyev.

What is your favourite book?

The Iliad.

What is your favourite film?

Ridley Scott's Alien.

Which is your favourite city?

Rome.

What do you like most about yourself?

My character.

What do you dislike about yourself?

My character.

What was your proudest moment?

When I jumped out of an aeroplane for the first time.

When and where were you happiest?

I try to feel happy everywhere I am but put me on the top of a mountain and I'll be the happiest woman in the universe.

What or who is the greatest love of your life?

Top secret…

What is your greatest fear?

To lose auto-sufficiency.

If you could change one thing about yourself, what would it be?

My metabolism 😉

What do you consider your greatest achievement?

To overcome my fears thanks to my will.

What is your most treasured possession?

It is not a material thing, but only a thought jealously kept in my head.

What is your greatest extravagance?

Having longer and longer crazy nails.

What do you consider the most overrated virtue?

Moderation.

On what occasion do you lie?

Never, my life philosophy is to always tell the truth.

If you hadn't been a singer, what would you have liked to be?

Own and direct a ranch.

What is your most marked characteristic?

That egocentric sunshine given by my zodiac sign: Leo.

What quality do you most value in a friend?

Loyalty.

What quality do you most value in a colleague?

Respect.

Which historical figure do you most admire?

How is it possible to decide between so many inspirational people in history?

Which living person do you most admire?

Anyone who can be selfless kind and generous towards others.

What do you most dislike?

Incoherence and hypocrisy.

What talent would you most like to have?

A mathematical mind.

What's your idea of perfect happiness?

The perfect happiness is in the middle of nature, surrounded by animals.

How do you prefer to die on stage?

Suicide – the hardest way to die.

What is your motto?

“All the world's a stage and all the men and women merely players…” William Shakespeare.

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