Tosca

Tosca is an opera in three acts by Giacomo Puccini to an Italian libretto by Luigi Illica and Giuseppe Giacosa. It premiered at the Teatro Costanzi in Rome on 14 January 1900. The work, based on Victorien Sardou's 1887 French-language dramatic play, La Tosca, is a melodramatic piece set in Rome in June 1800, with the Kingdom of Naples's control of Rome threatened by Napoleon's invasion of Italy. It contains depictions of torture, murder, and suicide, as well as some of Puccini's best-known lyrical arias.

AI overview

Tosca is a three-act opera by composer Giacomo Puccini that premiered in Rome in 1900, telling a melodramatic story set in Rome during Napoleon's invasion of Italy with themes of torture, murder, and suicide. The work is considered significant for containing some of Puccini's most celebrated musical arias and remains a frequently performed opera today.

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Key facts

Opera.premiere_location: Teatro Costanzi, Rome
Opera.name: Tosca
Opera.composer: Giacomo Puccini
Opera.image: Tosca (1899).jpg
Opera.image_upright: 1.1
Opera.alt: Stylised drawing showing Tosca standing over Scarpia's body, about to lay a crucifix on his chest. The text reads: "Tosca: libretto di V Sardou, L Illica, G Giacosa. Musica di G Puccini. Riccardi & C. editori"
Opera.caption: Original poster, depicting the death of Scarpia
Opera.language: Italian

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Wikidata facts

Duration: 2
Image: McCormack "Tosca" LCCN2014714502.jpg

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Commons category: Tosca
date of first performance: 1900-01-14
inception: 1898-00-00
number of parts of this work: 3
title: Tosca
native label: Tosca
publication date: 1900-00-00

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Article

24 sections

Contents

Background
Roles
Synopsis
Historical context
Act 1
Act 2
Act 3
Adaptation and writing
Reception and performance history
Premiere
Subsequent productions
Critical reception
Music
General style
Act 1
Act 2
Act 3
Instrumentation
List of arias and set numbers
Recordings
Editions and amendments
References
Further reading
External links

Puccini saw Sardou's play when it was touring Italy in 1889 and, after some vacillation, obtained the rights to turn the work into an opera in 1895. Turning the wordy French play into a succinct Italian opera took four years, during which the composer repeatedly argued with his librettists and publisher. Tosca premiered at a time of unrest in Rome, and its first performance was delayed for a day for fear of disturbances. Despite indifferent reviews from the critics, the opera was an immediate success with the public.