Born in Australia, Lyric-Coloratura Mezzo-Soprano, Allegra Giagu, made her Sydney Opera House début at eleven years old—joining Gondwana Voices, the Sydney Children's Choir and Opera Australia—engaged by the Australian Chamber Orchestra for the Huntington Estate Music Festival and as a soloist for the Sydney Symphony.

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Allegra stepped into the spotlight when Leo Schofield selected her to represent the Australian and British Commonwealth as soloist for the Edinburgh Military Tattoo—Salute to Australia. These performances were the catalyst not only for a collaboration with Dame Judi Dench and Classic FM for the Story of Christmas Appeal, but also for Allegra's decade-long relocation to London where she attended the Guildhall School of Music and Drama and the Royal College of Music.

 

New York is another home away from home, and Allegra worked intensively there with coaches from the Metropolitan Opera and LA Opera, touring frequently back to the UK, Europe and Australia for ​performances including the Trinity Project for Boho Strings at De Bijloke Concertzaal in Ghent; premiering John Corigliano's Mr. Tambourine Man—Seven Poems of Bob Dylan at Holywell Music Room for Oxford Lieder; and consecutive years at the Edinburgh Festival for EdFringe as Dorabella (Così fan Tutte), Countess (Le nozze di Figaro) with Opera dei Lumi, and Donna Elvira (Don Giovanni) with Black Cat Opera.

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An interest in performances which sit outside the conventional can be seen throughout Allegra's career. She has performed The Carnival—A Circus Opera on London's West End, in Germany and in Australia. She also worked in Vienna to produce a chamber opera and installation entitled, Photo Socrates.  In Melbourne, Allegra performed Verdi's Macbeth arranged for rock guitar and amplified strings by Peter Stopschinski, directed by Luke Leonard of Monk Parrots, New York City. And most recently, Allegra and pianist, Sally Whitwell came together to write a Cabaret, Opera & Ivory for Shepparton Festival, solidifying their passion for Regional Arts and inspiring future collaboration.

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Allegra has a passion for Iberian Music, and her ensemble, Mamás Bravas, released their début album ¡Venga! this year, live from Bloomington Early Music Festival in the USA. The previous album Curious Caledonians on ABC Classic with Evergreen Ensemble and Concerto Caledonia, was nominated for an Aria Award, journeying into the sound world of colonial Australia with music drawn from Sydney Living Museums and the State Library of New South Wales. Allegra also made her Pinchgut Opera debut in recent years with a Triple Bill directed by American sensation Crystal Manich. In this period, Allegra performed roles, including Donna Eleonora (Prima la musica, poi le parole) for ACOco directed by Jeremy Stanford, and Charlotte (Werther) with Kate Millett for Blanche Knochen Opera.

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​Beyond the stage, Allegra is known for her evocative performance on Dario Marianelli’s Oscar Nominated and Ivor Award winning Anna Karenina soundtrack, and her contribution to FOXTEL mini-series Fighting Season. She recorded vocals for Baz Luhrmann's Moulin Rouge, Peter Weir's Master and Commander; Neil Finn, Russell Crowe and Richard Tognetti; GUCCI, the ABC, Channel 7, Channel Ten, BBC Radio 4, RUSSH magazine at Sydney Opera House, the Victoria & Albert Museum, and QANTAS.

 

In print, Allegra has appeared in the New York Times photographed by the late Bill Cunningham, The Age, The Sunday Telegraph, The Sydney Morning Herald, LIMELIGHT, The Stage and others at home and abroad.

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Allegra is a former Gertrude Johnson Fellow and Henkell Family Associate Artist with ACOco. She has won the Harold Fisher Memorial Opera Scholarship awarded by B'Nai B'rith and the Melbourne Conservatorium of Music, and is a current recipient of the Fay Marles Scholarship from the University of Melbourne for her Doctoral Research into eighteenth-century Spanish music-theatre.