Roberto Alagna

Roberto Alagna

TOSCA EN CONCERT - FORUM GRIMALDI - MONACO

 

Opera

 

Opera in three acts by Giacomo Puccini

Italian libretto by Luigi Illica and Giuseppe Giacosa.

based on a work of Victorien Sardou 1987

Firs performance  at the Teatro Costanzi in Rome on 14 January 1900.

 

 

Performance

Forum - Grimaldi - Monaco

Venerdi november 15th of 2024

 

 

Cast

Floria Tosca | Maria José Siri

Mario Cavaradossi | Roberto Alagna

Le Baron Scarpia | Luca Salsi

Un sacristain | Giovanni Romeo

Cesare Angelotti | Giorgi Manoshvili

Spoletta | Reinaldo Macias

 

Conductor - Marco Armiliato

Chor Director - Stefano Visconti

 

 

Chor and Philharmonica Orkest of Monte Carlo

 

 

Press Review

 

 

Musicologie.org - Jean-Luc Vannier - 11/15/2024

 
 
Roberto Alagna and Tosca Honor Puccini in Monte-Carlo … With fervor and passion, he ignites the audience at the Grimaldi Forum in the role of Mario Cavaradossi... Tireless multiplication of impressive *forte*, which he handles with as much assurance as brilliance... Jubilant "Vittoria"... Tragic intensity of his "E lucevan le stelle"... Enthusiastic ovation ❞
 
« Roberto Alagna and Tosca honor Puccini in Monte-Carlo | When they passionately embody their roles — roles they know inside out, with every inflection and nuance, having performed them on the greatest opera stages — there are singers who completely erase the fact that this is merely a 'concert version'. And this, to the great delight of the audience, who are gifted with the boundless resources of their imagination to compensate for, here, a compromising fan, there, an assassin’s dagger, and elsewhere, a firing squad.
This was precisely the case on Friday, November 15, at the Grimaldi Forum, for a Tosca performed by the Opéra de Monte Carlo as part of the 'Puccini Centennial Festival'. Under the baton of Marco Armiliato — just as energetic as in the February 2023 production of Andrea Chénier — and accompanied by the Monte-Carlo Philharmonic Orchestra, which treated us to superb melodic sonorities — brilliant brass, smooth strings — Roberto Alagna, applauded on his entrance as though in the days of “Au théâtre ce soir” for a certain generation, set the Grimaldi Forum ablaze in the role of Mario Cavaradossi: an endless series of impressive *forte*, masterfully handled with both confidence and brilliance. […] His jubilant 'Vittoria, vittoria!' in Act II and the tragic intensity of his 'E lucevan le stelle' at the beginning of Act III could melt any iceberg, earning him, among many other moments in this performance, an enthusiastic ovation. »
 
 
 

Connessi all'Opera - Alessandro Mormile - 11/15/2024

 
A top-tier Cavaradossi... A vocal state that almost borders on grace... Enviable vocal control, high notes that, surprisingly, seem to have become more secure over time, skillfully managed, with an even more pronounced brilliance... A preserved breadth in the middle register that is impressive... A timbre that is both dense and delicate... We relish the consistency of his voice... Pure vocal charm... Subtle nuances of rare beauty. 
 
« The first to take advantage of [the care taken by conductor Armiliato to follow and support the voices] is the always fresh and vigorous Roberto Alagna, whose vocal state almost borders on grace. The famous Italian-French tenor, who has now passed the age of sixty, is a top-tier Cavaradossi. He is so not only because he appears on stage passionate and full of tenderness in the face of his Tosca’s jealousy, softening the outbursts of the duet in the first act, but also because he still sings with enviable vocal control and high notes that, surprisingly, seem to have become more secure over time, skillfully managed, with an even more marked brilliance than a few years ago. What is striking is the breadth preserved in the middle register, where the voice expands with the beauty of his timbre as always, seeming to have found a sonority that spreads out while preserving the vibrato as much as possible. And here Alagna begins with a "Recondita armonia," where we relish the soft consistency of his voice, which he finds even more in the following duet with Tosca, in a "Qual occhio al mondo" that is both dense and delicate, like a passionate embrace of seduction and pure vocal charm. Of course, he seeks to offer the best of himself in a well-sung "E lucevan le stelle," which is warmly applauded by the audience, but the true masterpiece of his performance comes right after, in an "O dolci mani" of extreme tenderness, finely executed with half-voices and subtle nuances of rare beauty. »
 
 
 

Première Loge - Hervé Casini - 11/15/2024

 
 
Roberto Alagna’s majestic return ... He offers the evening’s greatest vocal delights … A well-deserved triumph ... Alagna succeeds in everything: powerful high notes delivered with confidence, beautifully controlled diminuendos ... His voice remains strong, the midrange retains all its richness ... Once again, he proves tonight his well-earned reputation as one of the world’s most beautiful voices over the past thirty years. 
 
« Roberto Alagna’s majestic return | It had been since a dazzling performance as Maurizio in Adriana Lecouvreur (2017) that Monaco had last heard Roberto Alagna: his portrayal of Mario Cavaradossi last night in the Salle des Princes, during the concert version of Tosca presented as part of the Puccini Festival, was met with a well-deserved triumph. [...]
Indeed, the evening’s greatest vocal delights came from Roberto Alagna. [...] Confident from his first moments on stage, the French-Sicilian tenor delivered a highly polished “Recondita armonia.” His voice was in excellent form, with the midrange, in particular, displaying all its richness. Everything worked for Alagna tonight, from the striking, confidently delivered high notes of “La vita mi costasse” and “Vittoria!” to a duet in Act I with his partner, where he dared to explore beautifully controlled diminuendos.
It was naturally in his lament and, even more so, in “O dolci mani” that this deeply compelling performer surpassed himself in terms of phrasing and diminuendos, leaving no doubt—if any still remained—that his thirty-year reputation as one of the world’s greatest voices is not only justified but found, here in Monaco, one of those rare, transcendent moments to reaffirm it. Bravo, maestro! »
 
 
 

Opera-diary.com - Geoffrey - 11/15/2024

 
 
What a great evening for Roberto Alagna he knows this role like the back of his hand, he knows the smallest details of the score and it shows! 
 
« This summer at the Chorégies d’Orange, I had already had the chance to see Roberto Alagna in the role of Mario Cavaradossi. This time, he was taking on the same role at the Opéra de Monte Carlo, where he took his first steps in the role of Alfredo Germont in 1989… 1989 my friends, I was one year old! And 35 years later, I see this same singer who has scoured all the world stages, who is the darling of the French public and who takes the opera to another level, and who beyond the status of tenor, has the status of a true artist. And what a great evening for him, he knows this role like the back of his hand, he knows the smallest details of the score and it shows! »
 
 

Gallery 

 

 


10/11/2024