Nicola Luisotti

Luisotti led the 100th-anniversary performances of La fanciulla del West at the Metropolitan Opera and was presented with the Premio Puccini Prize by the Fondazione Festival Puccini. He served as music director of the Teatro di San Carlo in Naples from February 2012 to December 2014. He served as principal guest conductor of the Tokyo Symphony Orchestra from April 2009 to the spring of 2012.

Luisotti made his San Francisco Opera debut in 2005 conducting La forza del destino. In January 2007, the company announced his appointment as its third music director, effective with the 2009-2010 season, with an initial contract of 5 years. His work at San Francisco Opera has included conducting the premiere of Marco Tutino's La Ciociara (Two Women). In May 2016, the company announced that Luisotti was to conclude his music directorship of San Francisco Opera after the 2017-2018 season.

Luisotti's first professional opera conducting engagements were a 2000 production of Stiffelio in Trieste and a 2001 Staatstheater Stuttgart production of Il trovatore. Luisotti became Stuttgart's main conductor for the Italian repertory, conducting Tosca, Turandot, Madama Butterfly and Otello in 2006. His Stuttgart Il trovatore was met with critical acclaim, and within weeks he was offered a debut engagement at Paris Opera. Other early invitations came from the Canadian Opera Company (Un ballo in maschera in 2003), Genoa's Teatro Carlo Felice (Il viaggio a Reims in 2003 and Simon Boccanegra in 2004), and Munich's Bavarian State Opera (Tosca in 2004). He made his debut in Japan with a staged production of Tosca at Suntory Hall.

Nicola Luisotti (born 26 November 1961, Viareggio, Italy) is an Italian conductor. He currently holds the title "Director Principal Invitado" of Madrid's Teatro Real. He was music director of San Francisco Opera from 2009 to 2018.