I still remember when I saw the new program of the Opernhaus Zürich last May, and when I saw that Manon was scheduled for early October with Benjamin Bernheim and Lisette Oropesa, and that Tosca was being performed at the same time with Sonya Yoncheva, Jonas Kaufmann, and Bryn Terfel, I told myself that Zürich truly remains one of the top 10 opera houses in the world — a very, very ambitious theater, one that puts in the effort to build a great season, to fill the house, to communicate well, and above all, to make both its Swiss and international audience happy!
Balancing between modern and vintage, big casts, and big opera titles (see you soon for La Forza 🙂 ) — it’s a real success, and once again, always a genuine pleasure to drive 3 hours each way from Lausanne to applaud some of the very best the opera world has to offer.
Having Sonya Yoncheva in a cast is already insane.
Having Jonas Kaufmann in a cast is already crazy.
Having Bryn Terfel in a cast is already extraordinary.
But having all three of them on the same stage, the same night, in the same opera — that’s fabulous! Especially when you know the journey of these three singers in their respective roles. You can’t even count how many times the world’s most famous tenor has sung the painter, or how many times the Bulgarian soprano has embodied Tosca, and even more so, how many times Bryn has become the terrifying Scarpia. And he doesn’t just play Scarpia — he is Scarpia.
What a pleasure to see him play with the words, with the music, with the staging — he’s the pure embodiment of evil in this role. I honestly believe that, to this day, no one does it better — not just in acting, but maybe even in singing. And the final applause proved it: he was the night’s winner.
As for Sonya Yoncheva — she remains, along with Anna Netrebko, the one and only Tosca of our time.
A diva in every sense of the word.
An actress in every sense of the word.
A great talent in every sense of the word.
Her interpretation of “Vissi d’arte” (and “interpretation” is too weak a word here) left the entire hall breathless, with a little grin from Bryn Terfel who kept applauding even after the audience had finished. And watching Miss Yoncheva on stage, just a few seats away from her husband, was honestly a super cool experience!
And as for the ladies’ favorite, the man who, along with Roberto Alagna, has one of the biggest fan clubs — Jonas Kaufmann — he showed an admirable stage presence, with a way of interpreting the painter that’s different from two years ago, different from five years ago, different from ten years ago.
Yes, it’s no longer the Jonas Kaufmann of the past, yes, sometimes you can feel him stretching a bit vocally, but his aura remains intact, and despite a rather shy “Recondita Armonia,” he gave us a truly memorable “E lucevan le stelle.”
However… putting these three huge stars in such a boring staging is really bad.
It’s like filming Titanic with DiCaprio and Winslet — but on a wooden raft.
I don’t have much more to say than that, even though our three protagonists still managed to bring some life to the stage just through their presence.
Cruel is Tosca for secondary roles!
There’s little time and little space for Brent Michael Smith to make his mark, but the American, I think, added a very important new line to his résumé last night.
And to finish, a quick word for our conductor of the evening, Marco Armiliato — whom I’ve seen more times than my own boss this week, since I saw him twice in Milan for Rigoletto and tonight in Zürich for Tosca!
The Italian maestro is definitely very active on the major international stages.
A very classical conducting style, with some slightly cheeky brass last night — they probably thought they were playing a comic opera, haha.
Once again, a huge thank-you to the Opernhaus team for the always warm welcome.
See you very soon!
CAST
Tosca – Sonya Yoncheva
Cavaradossi – Jonas Kaufmann
Scarpia – Bryn Terfel
Angelotti – Brent Michael Smith
Mesner – Valeriy Murga
Spoletta – Johan Krogius
Sciaronne – Steffan Lloyd Owen
Un Carciere – Evan Gray
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Conductor – Marco Armiliato
Staging – Robert Carsen
