Tosca is a melodrama of love, betrayal and death set in the revolutionary unrest of 1800. The story concerns the opera singer Floria Tosca who tries to save her lover, the painter Mario Cavaradossi, from the brutal chief of police, Scarpia. Through-composed and expertly orchestrated it contains some of Puccini’s best-known lyrical arias and remains one of his most performed operas. In this 2022 production, an eminent cast is directed by the acclaimed Australian director Barrie Kosky – ‘the Amsterdam audience was completely swept off its feet by Kosky’s stunning production’ (Opera News).

Tosca is the first of Dutch National Opera’s short Puccini cycle by director Barrie Kosky.

Director Barrie Kosky is one of the most internationally sought-after stage directors of today presenting productions all over the world. In 2016 he was named Director of the Year by Opernwelt and in 2017 Kosky’s production of Saul won six out of seven categories at the Helpmann Awards, including Best Opera and Best Opera Direction. In 2018 Kosky’s Bayreuth Festival production of Die Meistersinger von Nürnberg was announced as Production of the Year by Opernwelt. In 2020 he was the recipient of a Sidney Myer Performing Arts Award, in recognition of his unique and influential contribution to the Australian Arts world.

Opera News commended Malin Byström’s ‘radiant and polished singing’ as Floria Tosca. In a previous review of another production it said that ‘Byström … made the character’s passage from sinner to saint fluid and believable. She commands a pristine soprano of distinctive colour and strength…’

‘Armenian baritone Gevorg Hakobyan grew into a terrifying Scarpia. Stripped by Kosky of savoir faire and elegant cynicism, Hakobyan offered a harsh, almost plebeian approach to the character that made him a horrifying adversary for Byström's Tosca.’ Opera News also wrote that ‘Joshua Guerrero's Cavaradossi showed an impressive, more metallic timbre.’

Joshua Guerrero sang in the Los Angeles Opera’s production of John Corigliano’s opera The Ghosts of Versailles which was released by Pentatone (PTC 5186538, a 2-SACD album). It won the 2017 Grammy Award for Best Engineered Album, Classical and for Best Opera Recording.

Cast:
- Floria Tosca: Malin Byström (soprano)
- Mario Cavaradossi: Joshua Guerrero (tenor)
- Il barone Scarpia: Gevorg Hakobyan (baritone)
- Cesare Angelotti: Martijn Sanders (baritone)
- Il Sagrestano: Federico De Michelis (bass-baritone)
- Spoletta: Lucas van Lierop (tenor)
- Sciarrone: Maksym Nazarenko (baritone)