Mauti Nunziata was born in
Palma Campania on 28 August 1946. She studied voice at the
Conservatorio San Pietro a Majella in
Naples. At the studio of the Teatro Lirico Sperimentale in
Palermo, she was trained by
Gina Cigna and Ines Alfani Tellini. She made her unofficial debut in
Sicily as Musetta in Puccini's
La bohème. Her official debut was as Liú in Puccini's
Turandot at the
Teatro Massimo in Palermo in 1965. Her first recognized success on the stage was as Elvira in Bellini's
I puritani in Palermo. She performed the role also in her first appearance in the United States at the
Dallas Opera in 1973. She performed at the
Arena di Verona, where her voice carried well, between 1975 and 1985; first as Micaela in Bizet's
Carmen, in 1977 as Nedda in Leoncavallo's
Pagliacci alongside
Plácido Domingo in the title role, in 1978 in the title role of Puccini's
Madama Butterfly, and in 1985 as Leonora in Verdi's
Il trovatore. She portrayed the title role in Verdi's
La traviata in a remarkable 1977 production at the
Teatro Real in Madrid. In 1976 she performed at
La Scala in Milan as Liù, and returned in 1978 as Madama Butterfly, conducted by
Georges Prêtre, and in 1981 as Nedda in
Pagliacci. ,
Dallas Opera, 1976 Between 1977 and 1979, Mauti Nunziata appeared in 26 performances at the
Metropolitan Opera in New York City, as Mimi in
La bohème, as La traviata and Nedda in
Pagliacci. When she stepped in as Mimi for
Mirella Freni, alongside
Nicolai Gedda as Rodolfo, a reviewer from the
New York Times described her lyric soprano as "a distinctive, vibrant instrument with a touch of hardness to it" and noted her "slender, eminently attractive Mimi", but missed more specific characterization. She appeared in 1978 as Madama Butterfly at the
Paris Opera, stepping in for
Teresa Żylis-Gara. She performed as a guest at the
Lyric Opera of Chicago as Butterfly and as Gilda in Verdi's
Rigoletto. In 1979 she appeared as Liù at the
Opéra de Monte-Carlo. She performed the title role of Zandonai's '''' as part of the 1986
Internationale Maifestspiele Wiesbaden. She portrayed Magda in Puccini's
La rondine at the
Teatro Comunale di Bologna in 1987. In 1991 she performed the title role of Zandonai's
Francesca da Rimini and Sulamith in Goldmark's
Die Königin von Saba at the
Teatro Regio di Torino. Her roles included Mozart's Fiordiligi in
Così fan tutte and Elvira in
Don Giovanni, Donizetti's Norina in
Don Pasquale, Gounod's Marguerite in
Faust, Massenet's
Manon' and Desdemona in Verdi's
Otello. She also performed as Leonora in Verdi's
La forza del destino, Leila in Bizet's
Les pêcheurs de perles, Margherita in Boito's
Mefistofele, and as Puccini's
Tosca. She retired in 1994, while in good vocal condition, with a farewell concert in
Brescia, where she performed the end of the first act of
La traviata.
Personal life From the late 1970s, Mauti Nunziata took residence in Monte Carlo. She died there on 22 July 2024, at the age of 77. == References ==