Tosca Takes the Plunge: A Review of the NCPA Production

As the seminal event set to break the next barrier in the NCPA's production quality, this Tosca succeeds on many fronts. Giancarlo del Monaco is a confident, controlled director; conductor Lu Jia has been feted for understanding Italian music even better than the Italians; the costuming was gorgeous, the stage design absolutely spectacular; and the musicians and performers were dynamic and theatrical, as a good Tosca cast should be.

But at times, it could feel like a dish made with the world's best ingredients, which just haven't been allowed quite enough time to simmer so the flavors fully meld. Even so, dishes like that can still be some of the best you've ever tasted, and this one's worth an indulgence.

For those unfamiliar, Tosca tells the story of the title character and her lover Cavaradossi over 18 hours of political mayhem. Cavaradossi tries to help an old friend and liberal revolutionary escape, only to have the jealous Tosca lead police chief Scarpia to the hiding place because she's convinced he's there with another woman. One thing leads to another, and you end up with a lot of dead people. Staples of the opera include romantic if measured Italian arias, ornate set design, and religious imagery.

In this production, the church, the Farnese Palace, and the final prison/cliff sets could all be called magnificent, but the grandness often created distance between the play and the audience. Or even between the story and the performers, who sometimes seemed like ants crawling around a giant set, staring upward to sing their lines.

For instance, the Madonna statue was so overpowering in the first act that the performers weren't able to interact with it as closely as they might have in other productions. Still, the beauty of the church - and elements like the sprawling Magdalene portrait, helped emphasize moments of emotion and drama in the narrative.

Also dazzling were the costumes, which were executed in lush, saturated textures and colors. Speaking of "executed," Tosca's ivory gown (very Kate Middleton) in the first act was a flirty contrast to the deep velvet number in which she commits murder. Nice touch. It seems the NCPA really spared no expense for this performance, and it's easy enough just to feast on all the eye candy.

As nice as eye candy is though, the true highlight of the performance was the characters. Let's be honest, Tosca's one of those stories that's all about the villain (kind of like the Lion King - or Silence of the Lambs, take your pick). So as sick as it is, it's fun just to go and be creeped out by the sociopathic perv that is Scarpia. Alberto Mastromarino did a fine job with the role, sending literal shivers down my spine when he started ripping his clothes off. I still shudder at the thought.

Nicola Beller Carbone's Tosca had a lot of theatrical spunk, and her throaty expectorations in Acts II and III were a less pretty, though interesting take on the character. Though much of the opera can feel dark and stifling, scenes in which she and Cavaradossi sang together were achingly sweet. Huang Ronghai's priest, Sacristano, was also quite the scene-stealer.

One disappointment, however, was the rather unceremonial way Tosca left Scarpia after the stabbing. The laying of candles and a cross around Scarpia's corpse has always been one of the defining moments in the opera, so when Carbone ran off the stage and the lights went dim, I half expected her to run back in to finish her job. This treatment of the scene felt rushed, and stripped both Tosca and Scarpia of some of their characters' complexity. It also distanced the production from its usually strongly religious themes, for better or for worse (though the swinging oversize censer marking the end of Act I's "Te Deum" was a beautiful decision).

Hmm, come to think of it, was Tosca's blase reaction to having killed Scarpia a choice made by the director? Or other forces at play?

Anyhow, this latest version of Tosca at the NCPA is very well-produced, beautiful to watch, and vastly enjoyable, if you can ignore some of the moments where a calculatedness slips through the drama in the form of overly rigid cues. Perhaps as the run continues, the different elements will marry better. It being the first Beijing production for Monaco as well as many in the cast, time might be that missing ingredient.

I'm also curious how the other cast will come together. If anyone catches the Chinese cast tonight or Sunday, let us know how it goes.

Tosca opened yesterday and will be playing through Sunday (May 12-15) at the NCPA. Get your tickets here.