“Tosca” at the Rome Opera House.Coming home in worldvision 125 years later

On Saturday, Nov. 1, from the Teatro dell'Opera in Rome, the stage where it was born 125 years ago, Rai 3 will broadcast Puccini's masterpiece live. The exceptional staging, which traces the original, will be available worldwide in the worldvision

By Rosalba Panzieri

The appointment for all lovers of culture and opera that has indelibly marked the history of music is for 8:50 p.m. Italian time on Rai3. In mondovision  Tosca by Giacomo Puccini, in the reconstruction of the original 1900 staging, returns to the stage of Rome's Teatro Costanzi dell'Opera, where it first saw the light of day. This powerful and philological tribute to Puccini's masterpiece is produced in collaboration with the Ministry of Culture and Rai Cultura, symbolically inaugurating the 2025/2026 season and celebrating the opera's 125th anniversary. Introducing and commenting on the televised evening will be Cristiana Capotondi and Alessandro Preziosi, well-known faces and passionate protagonists of the Rai project.

Birth of a myth 

On January 14, 1900, Rome witnessed the world premiere of Tosca, a melodrama in 3 acts by Giacomo Puccini, with a libretto by Giuseppe Giacosa and Luigi Illica. The libretto was born from a successful adaptation of the drama “La Tosca” by Victorien Sardou. The thwarted love between Floria Tosca and Cavaradossi, the yoke of power from which the heroine escapes, and the tragic end will captivate audiences of all ages and the world, making this opera a contemporary myth. Anyone who has loved and lost, both life and each other, has found a bit of their grief within the poignant romance for tenor And the stars were shining,In the third and final act.

Composed at Chialtri, a hillock between Lucca and Viareggio, between June 1898 and September 1899, Tosca was staged at the Teatro Costanzi of the Rome Opera House. Among those present were Queen Margherita and journalists and critics who arrived from all over the world. Despite the critics, who still partly resist, who saw this opera as a betrayal, accusing Puccini of dealing with a purely theatrical drama, Tosca is one of the most acclaimed and performed operas in the world.

Great performers to celebrate origins

Today, that same stage hosts a meticulous reconstruction of the original staging signed by Adolf Hohenstein, created under the supervision of the Archivio Storico Ricordi. On the podium is maestro Daniel Oren, who describes the score as “a fusion of passion, desire, sex, emotion... next to the most extreme cruelty there is beauty and poetry. This is its secret. That is why it will never grow old.” It is directed by Alessandro Talevi, who emphasizes the modernity of the work and the psychological depth required of the performers. The cast brings together three great voices of international opera, Eleonora Buratto as Tosca, Jonathan Tetelman as Cavaradossi, and Luca Salsi as Scarpia. Completing the company are Gabriele Sagona (Angelotti), Domenico Colaianni (Sagrestano), Matteo Mezzaro (Spoletta), Daniele Massimi (Sciarrone), Alessandro Guerzoni (Carceriere) and Maria Nardone (Pastorello). The television direction is by Fabrizio Guttuso Alaimo.

Hohenstein's original sets and costumes have been faithfully recreated by Carlo Savi and Anna Biagiotti, with lighting by Vinicio Cheli. The Orchestra and Chorus of the Teatro dell'Opera di Roma, conducted by Ciro Visco, will be joined by the Choral Singing School.

Following Puccini's authentic directions, the staging restores the Rome that the composer lived and loved, from the dawn views of Castel Sant'Angelo to the gilded interiors of Sant'Andrea della Valle, to the chimes of the Mattutino that Puccini listened to at dawn to catch the intonation to be included in the score.

On the occasion of the extraordinary performance, the Rome Opera House also presents the exhibition Tosca 125. Beyond the scene, which explores its genesis and fortunes through documents, sketches, photographs and costumes from the Ricordi Historical Archives and the Theater's collections.

An unmissable event for lovers of opera, history and beauty, because Tosca is coming home and doing it in style.