Tosca

Tosca done right
Zefferelli grand

Tonight's production was worthy of grand opera at The Met. Ah, the comfort of a traditional staging of a classic, Tosca, in rich style and size only the HUGE Metropolitan Opera can do. Screw the little European stages, starkly modern sets, and the snobs who think Puccini a populist! Give me Zeffirelli's enormous, cavernous sets with lavish detail. The lofty use of the height and ceiling space is heart-stopping - the Church of Sant'Andrea della Valle (Act I) with its frescoes and receding hall to the alter, and the sea cliff fort of Castel Sant'Angelo (Act III) complete with a guarding angel statue of monolithic proportions. The final song in Act I adds a large chorus, taking up the entire stage. With all the regal costumes, papal robes, and alter accoutrements, the view from the audience was spectacular. It was as if a Diego Velázquez painting had come to life. Breathtaking!

Andrea Gruber plays Tosca with passion and fire. During her highs of love to her fits of jealousy and desperation, she delivers. Sometimes a singer can hit all the notes and emotions of a piece but opera adds the added difficulty of acting. Gruber does just that, as does Vicenzo La Scola as Cavaradossi, her rather flippant, artistic lover, and James Morris and the devilish villain, Scarpia. Cavaradossi is working on a painting for the church and soon finds himself hiding his friend, an escaped political prisoner, from the fiendish head of the secret police, Scarpia. In Act II we learned of Scarpia's sadistic plans to use Tosca both mentally and physically to find the prisoner and torture Cavaradossi. Gruber looks regal as Tosca in this act, dripping with Swarovski crystals first designed for and worn by Maria Callas in this role at The Met in 1956, crown, necklace, and all! The third act has Tosca meeting her lover before his scheduled execution at the castle. The sun is setting and the clouds behind the fort walls slowly fade with day-ending shades of pinks and purple blues. What a dramatic background to the angelic statue and climatic finish to Tosca.

I was able to get orchestra tickets under $100 since it was a performance as part of a singles event. I went to one of these last year and learned that the bad appetizers and intermission desserts were horrid and not worth the calories but the seats are great. It was slightly disturbing to see men decades over 40 (it was an under-40 event) circling the much younger women. I went just for the opera. Wow! Sometimes I feel lucky living so close to Lincoln Center - and seeing this production was a highlight. I just hope to forget about that damn David Blaine fishbowl event soon.