Bonaplata made her début in 1886 at Milan's Teatro Dal Verme singing the title role in Aida. In 1890, she played Marguerite in Gounod's Faust at the Teatro Argentina in Rome. During the 1892–93 season, she performed at La Scala, first as Isabella in Alberto Franchetti's Cristoforo Colombo, then as Senta in Wagner's Der fliegende Holländer and finally as Jeftele in Ponchielli's Il figliuol prodigo.
