Standout performers making for thrilling 'Tosca' at PB Opera

Palm Beach Opera opened its 62^nd season Friday with a performance of Giacomo Puccini’s “Tosca” at the Kravis Center.

This opera, despite being a perennial favorite in the operatic canon, also serves as a benchmark for many voice types in their respective careers. The music in "Tosca" is very cinematic, with strategically placed repeats of character themes to drive the action and drama. The theme of Scarpia’s threatening pious conquest looms large over the entire score.

Adelmo Giudarelli was a sonorous and flexible voice as the Sacristian. Edward Thomas Bland was well cast with his booming baritone voice to portray Cesare Angelotti, an escaped political prisoner and Bonapartiste supporter. Angelotti enters the church to hide in his family’s crypt, and ends up causing a bit of a problem for the painter, Mario Cavaradossi, performed by Mario Chang.

Floria Tosca enters the church to hear her lover, Cavaradossi whispering with another. With the eventual discovery of feminine clothing, and the obvious revelation that Cavaradossi is painting Angelotti’s beautiful sister as a centerpiece to his work in the church, Tosca become suspicious and a little jealous. Chang’s performance of the aria, “Recondita armonia,” was captivating with its precision and depth of emotion.

Anastasia Bartoli’s portrayal of Tosca was nothing short of luminous, radiating passion and authenticity throughout her performance. Bartoli showcased Tosca as a multifaceted character, blending elements of warmth, loyalty and courage to create a performance that felt deeply authentic and compelling. Bartoli’s vocal mastery was remarkable, effortlessly projecting and soaring across the entirety of her vocal range with seamless grace and power.

Bartoli and Chang shared adorable moments together with on-stage chemistry that convincingly conveyed the tender reconciliation between Tosca and Cavaradossi in the first act.

In Act I, the “Scarpia theme” bellowed in the orchestra, and then there he was, sauntering down center stage: Greer Grimsley, perhaps the greatest Scarpia of our time. Grimsley’s performance exuded a commanding presence, and his voice resonated throughout the hall with authority and menace. With flawless vocal technique cultivated over several repeat performances in the role of the villainous Roman secret police chief, he navigated the depths of the character, delivering each scene with chilling precision. His performance was a master class in cavernous sound and dark, dramatic intensity, capturing the essence of Puccini’s villain with unparalleled skill and artistry.

The tempo and pacing of this performance is a credit to conductor David Stern. So often, the recitativo or the “Te Deum” in the Act I finale, for example, can be almost as difficult for the audience to breathe through as it is for the vocalists because of a sluggish tempo. Here the tempo and pacing created a very real, conversational environment from which the arias naturally blossomed. The effect was such that the audience remained deeply immersed in the drama throughout.

Act II unfolded amidst exquisite scenery, adorned with subtle hues of blue and green, featuring grand, angled walls with scenic design by R. Keith Brumley. When combined with the lighting design talents of Joe Beumer, the moonlit effects cast through the large windows on stage right were equal parts chilling and pure, underscoring the vacuum of shock and realization before the ending tragedy.

"Tosca" can be seen at 7:30 tonight with Caitlin Gotimer as Tosca, Jonathan Burton as Cavaradossi and Aleksey Bogadnov as Scarpia; and at 2 p.m. Sunday with Anastasia Bartoli as Tosca, Mario Chang as Cavaradossi and Greer Grimsley as Scarpia at the Kravis Center in West Palm Beach. Call 561-832-7469 or visit kravis.org.

This article originally appeared on Palm Beach Post: Stellar principal performances make PB Opera's 'Tosca' a thriller