DIRECTOR'S NOTES

Welcome to Mission Opera’s Tosca.

 

This opera has always been a powder keg of lust, faith, art, and power — but directing it today, in modern America, feels less like interpreting history and more like holding up a mirror. Set in a time of political upheaval and authoritarian rule, Tosca confronts us with urgent questions: What happens when truth is dangerous? What does it cost to resist? And how easily can personal freedoms be extinguished under the guise of law and order?

 

The villain of our story is Baron Scarpia, a man who weaponizes his office, his religion, and his desire to dominate both the political and personal lives of others. He feels disturbingly familiar. In an era where political strongmen exploit fear, where women’s bodies are legislated, and where journalists and artists are silenced or surveilled, Tosca’s world doesn’t feel so distant.

 

Floria Tosca herself—devout, passionate, bold—is not just a diva, but a woman pushed to the edge by the corrupt systems that ensnare her. Her act of defiance, born of desperation and love, echoes the courage we’ve seen in real people who stand up to repression, whether in courtrooms, on Capitol steps, or in the streets.

 

Her lover, artist Mario Cavaradossi, is a man divided - an artist with the soul of a revolutionary. His love of Tosca is passionate and pure, but it’s his political convictions that place them both in danger. When his ideals and heart collide, he chooses both, denying authoritarianism with courage, and clinging to love even as the cost becomes fatal.

 

As you watch tonight, consider how the collisions of art, love, and tyranny continue to play out in our world. Puccini’s music is gorgeous, but it doesn’t soften the blow. If anything, it sharpens it—reminding us that beauty and brutality often coexist, and that the fight for justice is never purely in the past.

 

Thank you for being here. I hope our Tosca stirs you, challenges you, and leaves you thinking long after the final chord fades.

 

—Justine Prado Manro