Robinson, Anastasia (c. 1692–1755)

English opera singer. Name variations: Countess of Peterborough. Born in Italy around 1692; died in Southampton, England, in April 1755; daughter of Thomas Robinson (a portrait painter); studied under Dr. Croft, Sandoni, and Baroness Lindelheim; married Charles Mordaunt, 3rd earl of Peterborough, around 1722 (died 1735).

Born in Italy near the end of the 17th century, Anastasia Robinson studied singing in London under Dr. Croft, Sandoni, and Baroness Lindelheim . She made her operatic debut in London in the pasticcio Creso in 1714 and went on to sing the soprano roles of Almirena in Rinaldo and Oriana in Amadigi, and in A. Scarlatti's Pirro e Demetrio. Because of illness, she began to sing as a contralto in 1719, including such roles as Matilda in Ottone, Teodata in Flavio, and Cornelia in Giulio Cesare. She also sang in operas by Porta and Bononcini. Robinson was known more for the charming expressiveness of her presentation than for her technical virtuosity. She remained on the London stage until 1724, two years after she secretly married Charles Mordaunt, 3rd earl of Peter-borough. It was said that he did not publicly acknowledge her until just before he died on his yacht off Lisbon on November 21, 1735. Upon retiring, she maintained a musical salon highlighting the works of Greene, Bononcini, and Tosi, among others. She died in Southampton, England, in 1755.

Brenda Kubiac , freelance writer, Chesterfield, Michigan