Ekaterina Bakanova answers the Gramilano Questionnaire… Singers’ Edition
| Russian soprano Ekaterina Bakanova answers questions about her life and loves on the day of her debut as the Countess, after many Susannas, in The Marriage of Figaro. |
When did you start singing?
When I was about 10 or 11 years old.
Why did you start singing?
Because I loved the feeling of being on stage.
Which singer inspired you most as a child?
Barbara Hendricks.
Which singer do you admire the most?
Victoria de Los Ángeles, Maria Callas, and Marina Rebeka.
What‘s your favourite role?
Always the one I’m preparing and performing in that moment.
Which role have you never sung but would love to?
Elettra in Idomeneo by Mozart, Luisa Miller, and Marguerite (Faust)
What‘s your favourite opera to watch?
Salome, Le nozze di Figaro, Don Pasquale.
Who is your favourite composer?
Mozart, Massenet, and Mercadante.
Who is your favourite writer?
Fedor Dostoevsky and Christian Morgenstern.
Who is your favourite theatre or film director?
Arnaud Bernard, Renaud Doucet, Steven Spielberg, Bernardo Bertolucci.
Who is your favourite actor?
Leonardo DiCaprio, Liam Neeson, Alberto Sordi, Angelina Jolie, Brigitte Bardot.
Who is your favourite dancer?
Nikolaj Tsiskaridze and Evgeniy Baryshnikov.
What is your favourite book?
Promise at Dawn.
What is your favourite film?
Jane Eyre and Inception.
Which is your favourite city?
Venice and Copenhagen.
What do you like most about yourself?
My self-control.
What do you dislike about yourself?
I tend to trust people too much.
What has been your proudest moment?
Becoming a mother.
When and where were you happiest?
With my child and with the people I love.
Who or what is the greatest love of your life?
My daughter.
What is your greatest fear?
Raising a child the wrong way.
If you could change one thing about yourself, what would it be?
I wish I had a driver’s license!!!
What do you consider your greatest achievement?
My international career.
What is your most treasured possession?
My ability with foreign languages.
What is your greatest extravagance?
My house – and Italian taxes!
What do you consider the most overrated virtue?
Altruism.
On what occasion do you lie?
When it’s necessary to save a situation or to avoid hurting someone.
If you hadn’t been a singer, what would you have liked to be?
A personal manager’s assistant or a child psychologist.
What is your most marked characteristic?
Generosity and altruism.
What quality do you most value in a friend?
Honesty, reliability, generosity, and a good sense of humour.
What quality do you most value in a colleague?
Professionalism and discipline.
Which historical figure do you most admire?
Queen Elizabeth, Rasputin, and the Dalai Lama.
Which living person do you most admire?
My parents and my vocal teacher, Gabriella Ravazzi.
What do you most dislike?
Arrogance and any form of violence.
What talent would you most like to have?
To drive a car!
What‘s your idea of perfect happiness?
Being surrounded by family and loved ones, in a home filled with children’s laughter.
How would you like to die?
Surrounded by my family, children, grandchildren, and friends.
What is your motto?
Never give up – and love this life.
Graham Spicer, aka ‘Gramilano’, is a writer, director and photographer based in Milan. He was a regular columnist for Opera Now magazine and wrote for the BBC until transferring to Italy. His articles have appeared in various publications from Woman’s Weekly to Gay Times, and he wrote the Danza in Italia column for Dancing Times magazine. Graham was the historical advisor on Codice Carla, the 2023 documentary on Italian ballerina Carla Fracci.
Graham also works as a dance photographer, and his photos have appeared in many books, theatre programmes, and magazines, including Dancing Times, Dance Spirit and Ballet2000, as well as all the major Italian newspapers.
He is a member of the Dance Section of The Critics’ Circle.
