Tragic grandeur, innate majesty, a mercurial temperament touched with kittenish innocence—all this plus her smoldering vocalism: these were qualities Shirley Verrett, herself a diva to her fingertips, brought to the title role of Puccini’s Tosca, a diva undone by the very gifts that make men adore her. The youthful Luciano Pavarotti sings the smitten Cavaradossi, with Cornell MacNeil as Scarpia, Rome’s predatory chief of police. James Conlon conducts. Streams for 23 hours.—M.G.
The Arts Intel Report
A Cultural Compass
For the World Traveler
For the World Traveler
A Cultural Compass
For the World Traveler
Tosca, by Giacomo Puccini
When
December 6, 2020
Where
Etc
Shirley Verrett and Luciano Pavarotti in “Tosca,” 1978–1979. Photo: Met Opera Archives.