Audio, Video, Blogs & Micro-blogs Create MediaMojo
Tickets for Tosca are $30 & $35 from Ticketmaster and the Colony Theater Box Office.
ACT I. Cesare Angelotti (Diego Baner), an escaped political prisoner, rushes into the church of Sant’ Andrea della Valle to hide in the Attavanti chapel. As he vanishes, an old Sacristan (Jorge Arcila) shuffles in, praying at the sound of the Angelus. Mario Cavaradossi (Enrique Pina) enters to work on his portrait of Mary Magdalene – inspired by the Marchesa Attavanti (Angelotti’s sister), whom he has seen but does not know. Taking out a miniature of the singer Floria Tosca (Jennifer Harris), he compares her raven beauty with that of the blonde Magdalene (“Recondita armonia”). The Sacristan grumbles disapproval and leaves. Angelotti ventures out and is recognized by his friend and fellow liberal Mario, who gives him food and hurries him back into the chapel as Tosca is heard calling outside. Forever suspicious, she jealously questions him, then prays, and reminds him of their rendezvous that evening at his villa (“Non la sospiri la nostra casetta?”). Suddenly recognizing the Marchesa Attavanti in the painting, she explodes with renewed suspicions, but he reassures her (“Qual’ occhio al mondo”). When she has gone, Mario summons Angelotti from the chapel; a cannon signals that the police have discovered the escape, so the two flee to Mario’s villa. Meanwhile, the Sacristan returns with choirboys who are to sing in a Te Deum that day. Their excitement is silenced by the entrance of Baron Scarpia (Nelson Martinez), chief of the secret police, in search of Angelotti. When Tosca comes back to her lover, Scarpia shows her a fan with the Attavanti crest, which he has just found. Thinking Mario faithless, Tosca tearfully vows vengeance and leaves as the church fills with worshipers. Scarpia, sending his men to follow her to Angelotti, schemes to get the diva in his power (“Va, Tosca!”).
ACT II. In the Farnese Palace, Scarpia anticipates the sadistic pleasure of bending Tosca to his will (“Ha più forte sapore”). The spy Spoletta (Jared Peroune) arrives, not having found Angelotti; to placate the baron he brings in Mario, who is interrogated while Tosca is heard singing a cantata at a royal gala downstairs. She enters just as her lover is being taken to an adjoining room: his arrogant silence is to be broken under torture. Unnerved by Scarpia’s questioning and the sound of Mario’s screams, she reveals Angelotti’s hiding place. Mario is carried in; realizing what has happened, he turns on Tosca, but the officer Sciarrone (Ismael Gonzalez) rushes in to announce that Napoleon has won the Battle of Marengo, a defeat for Scarpia’s side. Mario shouts his defiance of tyranny (“Vittoria!”) and is dragged to prison. Scarpia, resuming his supper, suggests that Tosca yield herself to him in exchange for her lover’s life. Fighting off his embraces, she protests her fate to God, having dedicated her life to art and love (“Vissi d’arte”). Scarpia again insists, but Spoletta interrupts: faced with capture, Angelotti has killed himself. Tosca, forced to give in or lose her lover, agrees to Scarpia’s proposition. The baron pretends to order a mock execution for the prisoner, after which he is to be freed; Spoletta leaves. No sooner has Scarpia written a safe-conduct for the lovers than Tosca snatches a knife from the table and kills him. Wrenching the document from his stiffening fingers and placing candles at his head and a crucifix on his chest, she slips from the room.
ACT III. The voice of a shepherd boy is heard as church bells toll the dawn. Mario awaits execution at the Castel Sant’Angelo; he bribes the jailer (Ismael Gonzalez) to convey a farewell note to Tosca. Writing it, overcome with memories of love, he gives way to despair (“E lucevan le stelle”). Suddenly Tosca runs in, filled with the story of her recent adventures. Mario caresses the hands that committed murder for his sake (“O dolci mani”), and the two hail their future. As the firing squad appears, the diva coaches Mario on how to fake his death convincingly; the soldiers fire and depart. Tosca urges Mario to hurry, but when he fails to move, she discovers that Scarpia’s treachery has transcended the grave: the bullets were real. When Spoletta rushes in to arrest Tosca for Scarpia’s murder, she cries to Scarpia to meet her before God, then leaps to her death.
– courtesy of Opera News
Tosca 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, yet also includes 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.
This production features Jennifer Harris, Enrique Pina, Nelson Martinez, Diego Baner, Jorge Arcila and Jared Peroune. Artistic Director Raffaele Cardone. Conductor Doris Lang Kosloff.
5 February 2012
29 January 2011
22 January 2011
Peter Hopkins was a featured clinician during the HorseExpo Pomona, 2 to 4 February 2012. Peter’s innovative approach to equine healthcare uses infrared technology as a non-invasive tool to identify areas of concern regarding muscles and nerves, as well as for saddle-fitting and hoof-balancing. EquineIR is the first training and marketing network for certified infrared thermographers interested in horses.
For more information about equine themography, visit: EquineIR
YouTube
Viddler
Fans of Natural Horsemanship will be flocking to the Horse Expo Pomona this year as it hosts clinicians Linda and Pat Parelli, Peter Hopkins and more than a dozen additional equine experts.
Over the years the Parellis have created a program that is based on understanding the nature and psychology of horses, while Hopkins and his partner Greg Stockton have developed a training and marketing network for certified infrared thermographers who are interested in horses.
Scheduled for February 2-4, 2012 at the Fairplex, the Horse Expo Pomona will be the Parellis’ first presentation in many years at any expo outside their own members-only tours, giving guests a wonderful opportunity to learn from the talented duo.
Based on a respect and love of horses, the Parelli method enables anyone at any level to have fun with horses and achieve amazing results, naturally. Parelli horse training avoids
using force, fear, harsh bits or mechanical training aids in favor of love, language and leadership or, said another way: relationship, communication and trustworthiness.
The Parellis are thrilled to be a part of the Horse Expo Pomona and help guests develop a better understanding of natural horsemanship techniques. “Miki Cohen always does a world class job of bringing the best of the horse industry together in one spot and if it’s good for the horse, we want to support it,” commented Pat. “This year we will be focusing on ‘Horsenality,’ the unique personality inside every horse and how you can motivate and get the most out of the relationship with your horse by using ‘Horsenality’ specific techniques that will catapult your success.”
Pat continued, “We hope the audience will add more arrows to their quiver of knowledge after our clinics. At the Horse Expo Pomona there will be something for everyone, and everything Miki arranges, from special events, to presenters, to trade show vendors is top notch!”
The natural approach to horse training is effective with all horse breeds, all disciplines and all styles of riding including Western, dressage, jumping, cross country, drag hunting, polo, racing, or simply happy hacking. Horsemen and women of all disciplines and skill levels, from first-time beginners to international competitors and Olympic medalists, have embraced the technique worldwide.
Mark your calendars today for Horse Expo Ponoma, February 2-4, 2012, and enjoy the opportunity to browse vendors, participate in clinics, and enjoy a wonderful equestrian atmosphere.
About Horse Expo Events
The Western States Horse Expo is the premier gathering of horse people in North America and over the past 13 years has established itself as the gold standard of equine events. Held at the spacious Cal Expo in beautiful Sacramento, CA, Horse Expo offers something for everyone. Joining Horse Expo events for the first time, the Horse Expo Pomona, the new event will take place February 2-4, 2012 at Fairplex in Pomona, California.
For more info and to learn all about the 2012 Horse Expo events, activities, clinicians and presenters, visit www.horsexpoevents.com or call 1-800-352-2411 .
