The painter Cavaradossi, whose Republican sympathies lead him to conceal the escaped revolutionary Angelotti, falls into the clutches of Scarpia, the Chief of Police. With the three main protagonists of his opera - Floria Tosca, Mario Cavaradossi and their ruthless adversary Scarpia - Puccini created iconic characters of interpretative art: for generations, opera lovers have associated legendary performances by their favourite singers with the unforgettable melodies of ‘E lucevan le stelle’, ‘Vissi d’arte’ and the overwhelming strains of ‘Va! Tosca!’ rising against the background of the Te Deum in the finale of Act I. Condensed into two hours of music, the fictive action is set at a precise historical juncture and in three historical places in Rome that can still be visited today: the church of Sant’Andrea della Valle, the Palazzo Farnese and Castel Sant’Angelo. Puccini’s Tosca is an outstanding work in many respects, and the precision and economy with which the composer transforms highly emotional material into sheer musical suspense is unique.
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