Italian and French expertise at the intersection of language, literature, and opera.
Lingua & Libretto is a specialized online practice at the intersection of Italian and French language, literature, history, and opera performance. It serves singers, musicians, teachers, and opera programs who want preparation that goes further than standard diction coaching and language instruction.
Who are our clients?
Singers, teachers, and collaborative artists preparing Italian repertoire
You are working on arias, recitatives, scenes, auditions, roles, or productions and want preparation that goes further than translation and diction alone. Whether you need a broader foundation in Italian sound and text or focused private coaching on a specific piece, there is a path here for you.
Conservatories, Young Artist Programs, opera companies, and voice studios
You want specialist Italian studies expertise brought into your program, production, or studio. Engagements are scoped and priced after an initial inquiry.
Serious adult learners
You want rigorous Italian or French instruction with genuine phonetic depth and a teacher who understands the performance context. Whether you are beginning from scratch, returning after a gap, or building toward fluency for study, travel, or your repertoire, there is a path here for you.
The rare expertise behind the practice
Lingua & Libretto was founded by Renée Anne Poulin, PhD, a scholar, teacher, and performer whose combination of expertise is rarely found in one place.
Renée Anne holds a PhD in Italian language and literature with research focused specifically on the early opera libretto, and a PhD minor in musicology. She brings extensive university-level teaching experience in Italian studies from research and teaching-focused universities across the United States, Canada, and Europe. A native French speaker with native-level fluency in Italian, she brings the phonetic instincts and expressive depth of both languages to every engagement.
Beyond the classroom and the archive, Renée Anne has served as co-director of a study abroad program in Tuscany and has performed as a violinist in Italian and French opera productions, bringing firsthand rehearsal and performance experience to a practice that is always connected to the realities of the stage.
Most language teachers have never been inside opera performance. Most diction coaches have not studied the libretto as literature, linguistics, and rhetoric. Most opera coaches know the repertoire deeply but may not have doctoral-level command of Italian and French as poetic, grammatical, and historical systems. Lingua & Libretto was built at the intersection of all three.
Begin with the method
Bring the Italian Text to Life: Five Things to Notice Before You Sing a Single Note is a free guide that introduces the five-lens method for reading Italian opera text. It gives you a clear picture of what this practice is about and how it approaches Italian opera text differently from standard diction and translation preparation.
It is a good starting point for anyone new to Lingua & Libretto, whether you are a singer, a teacher, a collaborative artist, or a serious opera lover.