The Fraschini Theatre was given this name when it was acquired by the City of Pavia, in November 1869, when the Pavia tenor Gaetano Fraschini was still alive.

Before it was renamed, the theatre was known as the Theatre of the Four Noble Knights, after the four nobleman that founded it (Count Francesco Gamberana Beccarla , the Marquis Pio Bellisomi , the Marquis Luigi Bellingeri Provera, and Count Giuseppe de'Giorgi Vistarino) and entrusted the design to Antonio Galli Bibiena. The theatre was completed and inaugurated in 1773.

The structure of the Fraschini Theatre is reminiscent of a typical Italian theatre, with three rows of boxes seats, two additional upper rows, a bell-shaped plan and a sounding board made from a gallery under the parterre. The shows performed in the initial seasons in the early 18th century were comedic operas, ballets and masked comedies. In the 20th century, on the other hand, the most important shows featured major stars and names including Vittorio Gassman in the post-war years. Even today, the Fraschini Theatre continues to entertain audiences with its theatrical seasons with great shows.