Marietta Piccolomini Suggest updates
Born Siena, 15 March 1834.
Died Poggio Imperiale, 23 December 1899.
Italian soprano.
Marietta Piccolomini enjoyed a brief but stellar career from her debut in Florence in 1852. She retired in 1860, following marriage to the Marchese Gaetani della Fargia.
While her voice was recognized to be not of the quality of her great contemporaries, she had a winning presence on stage, being both beautiful and a brilliant actress. She made her debut in a highly serious drama as Lucrezia Borgia, but her Donizetti repertoire also included the delightful comedy of Marie in La fille du régiment.
Her first appearance in Britain in 1856 was at Her Majesty's in London, in a season when she sang in the UK premiere of La traviata. She also sang in the British premiere of Luisa Miller in 1858. Her Verdi roles included Leonora in Il trovatore, but in London she also sang Arline in The Bohemian Girl (in Italian).
Soon after this Piccolomini was lured briefly to Scotland before sailing for New York.
Roles in Scotland
- Leonora a Duchess, lady-in-waiting to the Princess of Aragon
-
Trovatore 1858
- Violetta Valéry a courtesan
-
Traviata 1858
- Marie a foundling
-
Daughter of the Regiment 1858