[Met Performance] CID:91030



Tosca
Metropolitan Opera House, Wed, November 4, 1925




Tosca (188)
Giacomo Puccini | Luigi Illica/Giuseppe Giacosa
Tosca
Maria Jeritza

Cavaradossi
Mario Chamlee

Scarpia
Antonio Scotti

Sacristan
Pompilio Malatesta

Spoletta
Giordano Paltrinieri

Angelotti
Paolo Ananian

Sciarrone
Vincenzo Reschiglian

Shepherd
Mary Bonetti

Jailer
Millo Picco


Conductor
Tullio Serafin


Director
Wilhelm Von Wymetal

Set Designer
Mario Sala





Tosca received eight performances this season.

Review 1:

Review of Samuel Chotzinoff in the World

'LA TOSCA' AT THE METROPOLITAN

Mme. Jeritza is one of those rare figures which appears at those times when the repertoire of an opera house has become stale through tradition and by the introduction of a new bit of business or as innovation in the matter of dress perks up the jaded sensibilities of the spectators and breathes new life into old warhorses.

Last year Mme. Jeritza rejuvenated "La Tosca" by upsetting the traditions of twenty-five years and singing "Vissi d'arte" in an unoperatic attitude. But there was no telling how she would sing it this year, and the Metropolitan's first "Tosca" of the season last night brought a great assembly to the Opera House to see for itself.

It may as well be said at once that the famous singers sprang nothing new on her audience last night. At the appointed time Mr. Scotti, the Scarpia, pushed her brutally off the empire sofa and on to the floor, where she lay in a lovely lump and expatiated for no reason whatever on her devotion to art. This over, the audience visibly relaxed their attention, and the rest of the opera was received trustingly.

However, there is more to Mme. Jeritza's Tosca than her acrobatic delivery of an aria. She has all the ingredients of operatic effectiveness. Among these are, in the order of their importance, a striking figure, beautiful in repose, and plastic in action, a luminous voice which disappears with subtlety and strike out vigorously for the projection of the stock operatic passions. But, above all Mme. Jertiza injects, at times, a human note in her impersonation, a thing which is so unusual in opera that the spectacle of a prima donna in the grip of actual emotion is something to marvel at.

The other elements of last night's performance were familiar. Mr. Scotti played Scarpia, and this time one had to draw somewhat on one's loyalty to the veteran artist not to be too aware of his waning powers. Mr. Chamlee was the Cavaradossi, and sang and acted just a little above the passing mark. But that didn't matter much. There was the gripping melodrama and the lovely and effective Jeritza. Mr. Serafin conducted.



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