Opera HD: Tosca from the Metropolitan Opera
Love, idealism, and ruse in a thrilling drama by Giacomo Puccini
Bring the Metropolitan Opera’s magnificent experience to your home by streaming the historic December 1978 performance with Luciano Pavarotti; watch from anywhere on Thursday, June 4, 2020
MetOpera offers the archival recording of Puccini’s masterpiece with the star-studded cast delivering a passionate tale. This memorable performance features riveting soprano Shirley Merrett in the title role, tenor Luciano Pavarotti as her lover Cavaradossi, and baritone Cornell MacNeil as Scarpia. The opera was recorded on December 19, 1978.
From its premiere in the early 1900s, Puccini’s Tosca has triumphantly entered the repertoire of every opera house. Eagerly anticipated by the fans, the opera is a highlight of the MetOpera season.
The most recent production of Puccini’s Tosca by Sir David McVicar at the Met Opera, which has staged in the 2017-2018 season, offered a grand theatrical experience for the opera fans. The set and costume design for this production was done by John Macfarlane, who as a painter added to the depth of the characters through the rich design of the decorations and the period costumes. McVicar’s production which a review by AP describes as “similar to Zeffirelli’s”. It replaced a spare modern staging of Tosca by Luc Bondy which was not warmly received by the Met opera buffs.
You can stream Tosca from home on June 4, 2020.
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The now world-famous story of the passionate lovers and a heartless police chief is based on an 1887 French play La Tosca by Victorien Sardou, a renown French playwright in his time. Sardou had written this play for Sarah Bernhardt. That production was wildly successful touring around Europe with more than 3000 performances. Puccini, attending two of the performances, saw it promising to set as an opera. Following a lengthy negotiation with Sardou, he eventually got the rights and started his work on the score in 1895. The libretto was commissioned to Luigi Illica and Giuseppe Giacosa who had not only significantly cut back on the text of the rather lengthy play with multiple characters and dialogs, but also to transform the characters motives into a scenario suitable for an Italian opera.
The setting for the opera is Rome in 1800 at the time of Napoleon Wars that led to French domination over Italy. The historical church of Sant’Andrea della Valle in Act 1, Palazzo Farnese in Act 2, and Castel Sant’Angelo in Act 3 can still be visited today. With all these real places in mind, Puccini wanted to reconstruct the divine sounds that could be heard there. For that reason, the score includes a part for the church bells which are close in pitch to the bell of the St. Peter’s Basilica. While this adds to the time and efforts in the production of the opera, it doesn’t produce much effect on the audience.
The première was given in 1900 in Teatro Costanzi in Rome. That year Italy had experienced some unrest, so the première was even delayed by a day to avoid unwanted disturbances. It was performed to full houses for 30 performances in the first year and is now a beloved entry in the repertoire of every opera house around the world.
The role of Tosca is considered to be a career defying opportunity. One of the most famous interpreters of a temperamental lover was Maria Callas who was singing it as her last onstage operatic role in 1965. For Luciano Pavarotti , the role of Cavaradossi which he had performed since 1970, was also his last onstage performance at the Met in 2004.
The first recording of Tosca was done in 1918. Among the highly prized recent recordings is Royal Opera House version with Angela Gheorghiu, Roberto Alagna, Ruggero Raymond and Antonio Pappano conducting which was released in 2000.
Soprano Sonya Yoncheva’s appearance in Tosca in 2017-2018 season delighted the New York audiences.
Stunning design, masterful “verismo” style of music and passionate acting will undoubtedly create a memorable operatic experience for the spectators!
The role of Scarpia in this recording is performed by baritone Cornell MacNeil who is considered to be one of the strongest performer of the role. Expect a stunning theatrical performance with the top notch operatic mastery!
You can stream Tosca from home on June 4, 2020.
Stay in the know about future events and offers by subscribing to ARTS-NY newsletter Subscribe
Venue: Met Opera, Lincoln Center, NY
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