Esteemed director Ugo Tessitore has died at the age of 82 due to COVID-19 on Feb. 10, 2021.

Born in Rome, Italy, Tessitore studied at the University of California, Berkeley and in 1970 returned to Italy to work with Luca Ronconi as his assistant. With Ronconi, he worked on some of the director’s legendary productions.

Tessitore went on to have a fruitful relationship with teh Rossini Opera Festival where he began directing in 1981. He went onto work on such productions as “La donna del lago,” “Il viaggio a Reims,” “La Cenerentola,” “Tancredi,” and “Armida.” He worked with the festival until 2014.

In September 2020 he was set to revive Ronconi’s production of “Il Viaggio a Reims” at La Scala but was canceled due to COVID-19.

Tessitore was also well known for having collaborated with Pier Luigi Pizzi, Francesca Zambello, and Sandro Sequi. He also worked at the Opera di Roma where he brought a production of “Lucia di Lammermoor.”

Tessitore was also passionate about literature and translated many of Vladimir Nabokov’s books including “Lolita.” He also became a teacher and taught about operatic directing.