FRANCESCA PAOLETTI
soprano

RECENT AND UPCOMING ENGAGEMENTS

- Lady Macbeth in Verdi's Macbeth, at Teatro Sociale di Como (2026) and Teatro Lirico di Spoleto (2024).

- The title role in Puccini's Turandot, at the Teatro del Giglio in Lucca and at the Keimyung Art Center Theater in Daegu, South Korea, with Franco Alfano’s finale, at the Miller Theater in Augusta, USA, and at the Sala Verdi of Milan Conservatory, with Luciano Berio's finale (2026).

- Contessa in Mozart's Le Nozze di Figaro, at the Teatro Lirico di Spoleto (2026).

- Kate Pinkerton in Puccini's Madama Butterfly, at the Festival Puccini Torre del Lago (2025).

- The title role in Puccini's Suor Angelica, at the Milan Conservatory (2024).

BIOGRAPHY

Italian soprano Francesca Paoletti began her studies under the guidance of Tiziana Tramonti at the Fiesole School of Music. In 2019, she earned the Paolo and Nedo Fioretti scholarship, thanks to her vocal and musical skills. She continued her studies at the Luigi Cherubini Conservatory in Florence, specializing with Nemi Bertagni.

In 2022, Francesca was selected by the Puccini Festival Academy, coming into direct contact with Puccini's repertoire at the 68th Puccini Festival in Torre del Lago. In 2023, she debuted as Contessa in Mozart's Le Nozze di Figaro at the Teatro Niccolini in Florence. In the same year, she returned to the role of the Countess on an international tour, performing in Fažana and Pula (Croatia) and Massa Martana (Perugia), organized by Opera Network Firenze and the Associazione Musicale Bel Canto.

She distinguished herself in competitions: she was a finalist in the Opera di Pienza 2023 competition, winning the Special Prize. She is also the winner of the Let's Sing Opera 2023 competition. In the same year, she won the Voices for Berlin - Virtuoso & Belcanto competition in Lucca, which led her to perform at the Berliner Philharmonie with the Berlin Sinfonie Orchester.

In 2024, she tackled one of the most challenging roles in the lyric-dramatic repertoire, Turandot, with Europa InCanto, bringing the opera to the stage in some of Italy's most prestigious theaters: Teatro San Carlo in Naples, Teatro Filarmonico in Verona, Auditorium della Conciliazione, Auditorium Parco della Musica in Rome, and even the Teatro Romano in Ostia. In September, she debuted as Lady Macbeth in Verdi's Macbeth, under the direction of Carlo Palleschi, establishing herself with dramatic power, expressive intensity, and stage presence in the productions at the Teatro Nuovo "Giancarlo Menotti" in Spoleto, the Teatro Morlacchi in Perugia, and the Teatro Comunale in Todi. She subsequently returned to Puccini as the title role in Suor Angelica at the Teatro Carcano in Milan, under the direction of Andrea Solinas and directed by Mario De Carlo.

In 2025, she debuted at the 71st Puccini Festival in Torre del Lago as Kate Pinkerton in Madama Butterfly, directed by Manu Lalli. In September of the same year, she returned to Mozart, singing the role of the Countess in Le Nozze di Figaro with the Teatro Lirico Sperimentale di Spoleto, performing at the Teatro Nuovo in Spoleto and the Teatro Comunale in Todi.

In 2026, she was the protagonist of the international project "T4T", performing Turandot in a comprehensive tour that saw her at the Miller Theater in Augusta (USA), the Sala Verdi of the Milan Conservatory with the Orchestra Filarmonica Italiana (with Luciano Berio’s finale), and on at the Keimyung Art Center Theater in South Korea (with Franco Alfano’s finale).

As part of the centenary celebrations for Turandot, she sang the title role at the Teatro del Giglio in Lucca (2026), under the direction of Maestro Alessandro D’Agostini. In July 2026, she performed the role of Lady Macbeth in Verdi's Macbeth, a production of AsLiCo – Teatro Sociale di Como. Her performance as Lady Macbeth received significant critical acclaim.

REVIEWS

“Francesca Paoletti stands out as the sensual, statuesque, and determined Lady Macbeth. With a sharp, penetrating voice, well-expressed in the high notes, and cohesive in the other registers, a striking stage presence, and refined phrasing rich in inflections, the thirty-two-year-old soprano effectively embodies a ruthless, cynical, and seductive woman, ready to do anything to attain power. The cavatina 'Vieni! t'affretta' and the subsequent cabaletta 'Or tutti sorgete' are mastered with confidence; the romanza 'a luce langue' is tackled with searing dramatic intensity, while the fearful sleepwalking scene is sung with passion. Also commendable is her rendition of the toast, where Paoletti significantly varies her expressiveness, moving from the apparent joy of the first verse to the nervousness of the second.”
Stefano Balbioni – Connessi all'Opera

“Francesca Paoletti's Lady Macbeth is truly remarkable, tackling one of the most challenging roles in Verdi's repertoire with courage, musicality, and a remarkably intense stage presence. Her sleepwalking scene represents one of the evening's emotional high points: a madness that is never caricatured, but profoundly human.”
Michele Beretta – OperaClick

“Francesca Paoletti's Lady Macbeth proved a perfect and symmetrical theatrical counterpart. The Tuscan soprano, with a rare, authentic lirico-spinto voice, approached Verdi's formidable score with bold technical confidence and a fiery dramatic temperament. From her entrance with the reading of the letter and the subsequent cabaletta, Paoletti bent her voice to the expressive demands of the role, alternating cold, cutting accents with sudden, soft micro-dynamics, carefully avoiding any facile histrionics.”
Roberto Cucchi – I Teatri dell'Est

FRANCESCA PAOLETTI soprano

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FRANCESCA PAOLETTI
soprano