Opera Colorado Returns to the Stage with Puccini's TOSCA

Starting Saturday, November 6, Opera Colorado presents Tosca at the Ellie Caulkins Opera House for four performances only. This lavish production of Puccini's operatic blockbuster is Opera Colorado's first performance at the Ellie Caulkins Opera house since COVID-19 restrictions were put in place in March 2020, causing all mainstage productions for the next eighteen months to be cancelled or postponed.

General & Artistic Director Greg Carpenter says, "It is so exciting to return to producing live, grand opera at the Ellie Caulkins Opera House this fall, and to finally present the Tosca we had to cancel in April 2020. This stunning, classic production and superb cast, along with the great Opera Colorado Orchestra and Chorus, will make for a season opener worth waiting for."

Tosca is a high-stakes thriller filled with political conflict, betrayal, revenge, and love. Audiences are transported to nineteenth-century Rome to experience what the Denver Post has called one of "the most gripping works in opera."

The prima donna will be played by renowned soprano Melissa Citro, who "exuded grace and nobility...while negotiating some of Puccini's most demanding vocal requirements" (Daily Camera) in Opera Colorado's 2016 production of La fanciulla del West. Rafael Davila, one of the most sought-after tenors of his generation, portrays her lover Cavaradossi. Luis Ledesma returns as the evil Scarpia after an enchanting performance in Opera Colorado's Canciones de Nuestras Tierras at the Denver Botanic Gardens last spring.

Heralded by Opera News for her "absorbing, provocative staging," Louisa Muller makes her Opera Colorado directorial debut, and Music Director Ari Pelto leads principal singers, as well as the Opera Colorado Chorus and Orchestra from the podium. We also welcome members of the Colorado Children's Chorale, lending their talent to act one.

Tickets start at $35 and can be purchased by visiting opercolorado.org/events or by calling 303.468.2030 (press 1). All performances are sung in Italian with English and Spanish subtitles at every seat and English supertitles above the stage.

For more information about Opera Colorado's current and future programming, visit operacolorado.org.