Tosca by Puccini (Opera) 1983 John Wegner, Marilyn Furian, John Shaw
Souvenir Brochure Book Style Many Images from the Past, Information on Story and Cast
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, and has inspired memorable performances from many of opera's leading singers.
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.
Musically, Tosca is structured as a through-composed work, with arias, recitative, choruses and other elements musically woven into a seamless whole. Puccini used Wagnerian leitmotifs (short musical statements) to identify characters, objects and ideas. While critics have frequently dismissed the opera as a facile melodrama with confusions of plot—musicologist Joseph Kerman famously called it a "shabby little shocker"—the power of its score and the inventiveness of its orchestration have been widely acknowledged. The dramatic force of Tosca and its characters continues to fascinate both performers and audiences, and the work remains one of the most frequently performed operas. Many recordings of the work have been issued, both of studio and live performances.
Australian Opera 1983 Cast with extra 1 x Ticket
John Wegner, Marilyn Zschau, John Shaw, Bruce Martin, Pieter van der Stolk, Lamberto Furlan, Catharine Duval, Raymond Myers, Graeme Myers, Neville Grave, Robert Eddie, Constantine Mavridis.
Conductor Carlo Felice Cillaro or William Reid
Producer John Copley
Set Designer Allan Lees
Costume Designer Michael Stennett
Lighting John Copley, Donn Byrnes
Resident Producer Andre Sinclair
Stage Manager Ruth Catlin
Size 205 x 300 mm Information Something Very Beautiful with 1 original ticket Sydney Opera House
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Condition: Used Looks Good - Souvenir Brochure
