Tosca review: Bryn Terfel perfects the art of evil in Royal Opera's statuesque production

1/8
Nick Kimberley4 June 2019

The brutal orchestral flourish that opens Puccini’s Tosca is a miniature musical portrait of Scarpia, the local chief of police (we are in Rome in 1800) and a nasty piece of work. Without him, the diva Tosca and her lover Cavaradossi would be just another of opera’s doomed couples. Scarpia makes them interesting.

The role requires a singer who can embody vileness without turning Scarpia into a pantomime villain.

Step forward Bryn Terfel, a regular in Jonathan Kent’s somewhat statuesque Royal Opera production, now in its eighth revival. Terfel’s Scarpia is a character for whom the word “lubricious” might have been coined: he toys with Tosca like a cat playing with its prey, and when he thinks she has succumbed to his wishes it’s no accident that he approaches her from the rear. She has no hesitation in stabbing him in the front.

Terfel can’t carry the opera alone, and there are strong performances around him, not least from conductor Alexander Joel. Kristine Opolais’s voice is not large but it has sufficient depth to make Tosca’s big aria a genuine showpiece, while Vittorio Grigòlo’s Cavaradossi displays great power. It’s thrilling but wearing, as is his habit of turning to face the audience at key moments.

Until June 20 (020 7304 4000, roh.org.uk)

The best opera to watch in 2019

1/5

Create a FREE account to continue reading

eros

Registration is a free and easy way to support our journalism.

Join our community where you can: comment on stories; sign up to newsletters; enter competitions and access content on our app.

Your email address

Must be at least 6 characters, include an upper and lower case character and a number

You must be at least 18 years old to create an account

* Required fields

Already have an account? SIGN IN

By clicking Create Account you confirm that your data has been entered correctly and you have read and agree to our Terms of use , Cookie policy and Privacy policy .

This site is protected by reCAPTCHA and the Google Privacy Policy and Terms of Service apply.

Thank you for registering

Please refresh the page or navigate to another page on the site to be automatically logged in