Giacomo Puccini: Tosca

Soloists:

Angela Gheorghiu (Floria Tosca), Roberto Alagna (Mario Cavaradossi), Ruggero Raimondi (Baron Scarpia), Maurizio Muraro (Cesare Angelotti), Enrico Fissore (Sacristan), David Cangelosi (Spoletta), Sorin Coliban (Sciarrone)

Orchestra, choir:

Royal Opera House Covent Garden Choir and Orchestra

Conductor:

Antonio Pappano

Director:

Benoit Jacquot

Tosca – the embodiment of Italian opera. It is a thrilling story of desire, passion, and death. A story of one beloved woman and two men fighting a duel – one of them an angel, the other a demon. Successful French film director Benoît Jacquot did not create a stage production, but rather a film version of the opera in 2001. It was a bold idea and an exciting project – he loves his actors and close-ups and has developed his own style, as evident in many of his other films. The result is a magnificent production of one of Puccini's greatest operas, with stunning sets, beautiful costumes, and an emotional performance by Angela Gheorghiu and Roberto Alagna, the dream couple of opera at the time, in the leading roles, with Ruggero Raimondi as their counterpart.