Puccini: Tosca
Kristine Opolais (Tosca), Marcelo Álvarez Mario (Cavaradossi), Marco Vratogna (Scarpia), Alexander Tsymbalyuk (Angelotti), Peter Rose (Il Sagrestano)
Berliner Philharmoniker, Philharmonia Chor Wien & Cantus Juvenum Karlsruhe, Sir Simon Rattle
There is something to be said for embracing the vulgar in Puccini. Rattle does more than this. He polishes the sadistic brilliance of the instrumentation to a blinding dazzle, most strikingly...
Puccini: Tosca
Kristine Opolais (Tosca), Marcelo Álvarez Mario (Cavaradossi), Marco Vratogna (Scarpia), Alexander Tsymbalyuk (Angelotti), Peter Rose (Il Sagrestano)
Berliner Philharmoniker, Philharmonia Chor Wien & Cantus Juvenum Karlsruhe, Sir Simon Rattle
Purchase product
There is something to be said for embracing the vulgar in Puccini. Rattle does more than this. He polishes the sadistic brilliance of the instrumentation to a blinding dazzle, most strikingly...
About
Philipp Himmelmann (stage director)
Raimund Bauer (set design)
Kathi Maurer (costume design)
For the Easter Festival 2017 in Baden-Baden, Sir Simon Rattle and the Berliner Philharmoniker draw their inspiration from Tosca, the most brilliant of all the Puccini operas. And that is deservedly so, since Tosca is not merely a work of art, but also a gripping suspense-packed story – Puccini at its best. In a spectacular staging by Philipp Himmelmann, this production offers a fresh, sexy view on this beloved classic.
Kristine Opolais changes into the well-behaved pristine prima donna and shows how to wrap the men on stage round her finger, as she performs with fierce and full physical commitment. Marcelo Álvarez sings with powerful, but smooth tenor. Marco Vratonga’s modern take on Scarpia convinces with brutal elegance and a great voice.
BD Picture: 1080i Full HD – 16:9
BD Sound: PCM Stereo, DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1
Language/subtitles: Italian/ English, German, French
Region code: All (A1/B2/C3)
Running time: 180 mins
Production: April 2017
Contents and tracklist
- Live from the Baden-Baden Easter Festival, 2017
- Kristine Opolais (Floria Tosca), Marcelo Álvarez Mario Cavaradossi), Marco Vratogna (Baron Scarpia), Alexander Tsymbalyuk (Cesare Angelotti), Peter Rose (Il Sagrestano), Peter Tantsits (Spoletta), Douglas Williams (Sciarrone), Walter Fink (Un carceriere)
- Berliner Philharmoniker, Philharmonia Chor Wien & Cantus Juvenum Karlsruhe
- Sir Simon Rattle
Awards and reviews
January 2018
There is something to be said for embracing the vulgar in Puccini. Rattle does more than this. He polishes the sadistic brilliance of the instrumentation to a blinding dazzle, most strikingly at the climax of Act I…But if you give two hoots about any of the surviving characters by Act III you have a softer heart than mine.
January 2018
Rattle and his orchestra add both depth and gloss: to hear the shimmer of the Berlin strings in the eerie dwells of the Te Deum is enough to absolve the conductor of his reverential tempos…[Álvarez] shapes the text imaginatively and sings with tenderness and generosity, although you’ll never believe he’s a revolutionary…In a grander, gaudier show, Opolais would hit more buttons than she does.
February 2018
All three of the central performances have something to offer. Opolais brings physical glamour to a light-voiced central interpretation…Vratogna manages well the combination of physical brutality and suavity at the heart of Scarpia...Marcelo Álvarez offers a vocally generous Cavaradossi, delivered with ringing tone and emotional warmth.
