Tosca aeterna: Anna Netrebko commands attention in Vienna

By Zoltán Szabó, 15 December 2020

Loading, please wait...

See full listing

“the dramatic momentum of her voluptuous voice was irresistible”

Reviewed at Wiener Staatsoper, Vienna on 13 December 2020

Puccini, Tosca

Vienna State Opera

Bertrand de Billy, Conductor

Margarethe Wallmann, Director

Nicola Benois, Set Designer, Costume Designer

Orchestra of the Vienna State Opera

Vienna State Oper Children's Choir

Anna Netrebko, Floria Tosca

Yusif Eyvazov, Mario Cavaradossi

Wolfgang Koch, Baron Scarpia

Andrea Giovannini, Spoletta

Mikhail Kazakov, A Jailer

Evgeny Solodovnikov, Cesare Angelotti

Wolfgang Bankl, Sacristan

Attila Mókus, Sciarrone

Concert Association Vienna State Opera Chorus

At half mast: Simon Boccanegra revived in Vienna

Orsolya Gyárfás, 19th April

Marco Armiliato's conducting thrills and Federica Lombardi's radiant Amelia stands out in the Wiener Staatsoper's latest revival of Simon Boccanegra.

***11

Anna Netrebko shines in Vienna’s timeless Tosca

Laura Servidei, 18th April

In a world where opera productions often stray into the abstract, the Wiener Staatsoper’s Tosca offers a refreshing return to tradition – and Anna Netrebko delivers a splendid performance.

****1

Tragedy in the mirror: Minghella’s Madama Butterfly in Vienna

Laura Servidei, 14th March

Ermonela Jaho returns to one of her signature roles as Cio-Cio-San, delivering a searing and deeply nuanced portrayal.

****1

Too much and too little: Jan Lauwers’ restless Clemenza in Vienna

Chanda VanderHart, 12th March

The creative team behind the new Staatsoper Clemenza is unwilling to trust that Mozart’s opera is interesting enough to stand on its own.

***11

An Idomeneo shattered to pieces at the Wiener Staatsoper

Orsolya Gyárfás, 23rd January

A committed cast struggles to lend a spark of life to Kasper Holten's static staging of Mozart's first mature opera.

**111

A holiday Bohème: Puccini, Zeffirelli and tradition in Vienna

Laura Servidei, 21st December

Giacomo Sagripanti conducts a luxuriant reading with a cast anchored by Juan Diego Flórez and Nicole Car, in Zeffirelli’s familiar, generous, unabashedly emotional production.

***11

More reviews...

Zoltán Szabó

Zoltán Szabó is a cellist and musicologist. Having migrated from his native Hungary to Australia in 1985, he worked with the Australian Chamber Orchestra in Sydney until 1991, when he became Principal Cello with Opera Australia. In 2017, he was awarded with a Doctor of Philosophy degree (PhD). Currently, he is teaching music history and musicology at the Sydney Conservatorium of Music.