History Trivia / Tosca

** Toscas have missed the mattress in the final jump. Poor Elisabeth Knighton Printy, for instance, fell thirty feet and broke ''both'' her legs.

*** And lastly, Bryn Terfel, scheduled to play Scarpia, withdrew due to apparent vocal fatigue, and was replaced by Zeljko Lucic. At least he had some experience with the role. Fortunately all went well once the dust settled.

** Jonas Kaufmann, the original Cavaradossi, withdrew only weeks after the production was announced, and was replaced by Vittorio Grigòlo, who had never sung Cavaradossi before.
** Then Kristine Opolais, the original Tosca, withdrew a few months later for personal reasons, and was replaced by Sonya Yoncheva, who had never sung Tosca before.
** After that, Andris Nelsons, the original conductor and Opolais' husband at the time, also dropped out. James Levine was then planning to replace him when [[https://www.nytimes.com/2017/12/03/arts/music/james-levine-met-opera.html?smid=fb-share&_r=0 his career was abruptly destroyed in a major sexual abuse scandal]], resulting in Emmanuel Villaume to take over.
** And lastly, Bryn Terfel, scheduled to play Scarpia, withdrew due to apparent vocal fatigue, and was replaced by Zeljko Lucic. At least he had some experience with the role. Fortunately all went well once the dust settled.

* HeartwarmingMoments: At curtain calls on the final night of performances for ''Tosca'' at the San Francisco Opera, Sept. 5, 2021, Soloman Howard, who played Angelotti, held up his hand to ask the audience to hold their applause for a minute. [[GrandRomanticGesture He then knelt]] in front of an astonished Ailyn Pérez, that night's Tosca, and [[https://operawire.com/san-francisco-operas-tosca-ends-with-surprise-marriage-proposal/ asked her to marry him]]. Amid cheers and applause, she fervently accepted.

* TroubledProduction: Sir David [=McVicar's=] production at the Met Opera for the 2017-18 season turned out to be this.
** Jonas Kaufmann, the original Cavaradossi, withdrew only weeks after the production was announced, and was replaced by Vittorio Grigòlo.
** Then Kristine Opolais, the original Tosca, withdrew a few months later for personal reasons, and was replaced by Sonya Yoncheva.
** After that, Andris Nelsons, the original conductor and Opolais' husband at the time, also dropped out. James Levine was then planning to replace him when his career was abruptly destroyed in a major sexual abuse scandal, resulting in Emmanuel Villaume to take over.
** And lastly, Bryn Terfel, scheduled to play Scarpia, withdrew due to apparent vocal fatigue, and was replaced by Zeljko Lucic.

*** This was Fabio Armiliato, who had recently been grazed by a sword in ''Carmen''. He refused to cancel subsequent performances and continued with crutches for the next one. While he was standing backstage waiting to come in for Act II, one crutch caught in something and he fell and broke the ''other'' leg.

*** 1966, conducted by Lorin Maazel: Swedish soprano Birgit Nilsson as Tosca, Italian tenor Franco Corelli as Cavaradossi, and German baritone Dietrich Fischer-Dieskau as Scarpia.
*** 1972, conducted by Zubin Mehta: African-American soprano Leontyne Price as Tosca, Spanish tenor Plácido Domingo as Cavaradossi, and American baritone Sherrill Milnes as Scarpia.

** And lastly, Bryn Terfel, scheduled to play Scarpia, withdrew due to apparent vocal fatigue, and was replaced by Zeljko Lucic.

* TroubledProduction: David [=McVicar's=] production at the Met Opera for the 2017-18 season turned out to be this.

* TroubledProduction: David McVicar's production at the Met Opera for the 2017-18 season turned out to be this.

** Then, Kristine Opolais, the original Tosca, withdrew a few months later for personal reasons, and was replaced by Sonya Yoncheva.
** Then the conductor for the production, Andris Nelsons, also dropped out, and James Levine, who planned to replace him, has his career ended in a sexual abuse scandal, leaving Emmanuel Villaume to take over.

** Similarly, the aforementioned stabbed Scarpias did very realistic death scenes. When Antonio Scotti was stabbed by Maria Jeritza back in TheRoaringTwenties at the Old Met, his cries of pain were real. And when Tito Gobbi was stabbed by Maria Callas, he acted out his death scene with his own blood.

*** 1953, conducted by Albert de Sabata: Greek soprano Maria Callas as Tosca, and Italians Giuseppe Di Stephano and Tito Gobbi as Cavaradossi and Scarpia, respectively.

* ThrowItIn: One night on stage, the famous soprano Maria Jeritza tripped and fell, just before Tosca's great aria ''Vissi d'arte''. Rather than climb awkwardly back up again to sing, she chose to remain on the floor for the duration of the aria. This worked so well that it has become traditional that Tosca sings ''Vissi d'arte'' while lying on the floor.

** Toscas have missed the mattress in the final jump.

*** 1952, conducted by Guido Picco: Greek soprano Maria Callas as Tosca, and Italians Giuseppe Di Stephano and Tito Gobbi as Cavaradossi and Scarpia, respectively.

*** The famous 1992 film by Brian Large (a performance that takes place at the exact locations and times of day according to the libretto) casts American soprano as Tosca, Plácido Domingo as Cavaradossi, and Ruggero Raimondi as Scarpia.

*** Tenor Giuseppe Di Stephano and baritone Tito Gobbi have done two separate recordings with Maria Callas and Renata Tebaldi.
*** Baritone Sherrill Milnes has done separate recordings with Mirella Freni, Luciano Pavarotti, Leontyne Price, Plácido Domingo, and Raina Kabaivanska.
*** Tenor Franco Corelli has done separate recordings with Leontyne Price and Birgit Nilsson.
*** Angela Gheorghiu, Roberto Alagna, and Ruggero Raimondi have recorded together.

** Tenor Giuseppe Di Stephano and baritone Tito Gobbi have done two separate recordings with Maria Callas and Renata Tebaldi.
** Baritone Sherrill Milnes has done separate recordings with Mirella Freni, Luciano Pavarotti, Leontyne Price, Plácido Domingo, and Raina Kabaivanska.
** Tenor Franco Corelli has done separate recordings with Leontyne Price and Birgit Nilsson
** Angela Gheorghiu, Roberto Alagna, and Ruggero Raimondi have recorded and filmed a production together.

** Caravadossis have been struck by shrapnel from prop guns. See an agonizing example [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Uk4N8ltMAqE here]] (at 1:58).

** Scarpias have been stabbed for real with malfunctioning prop knives (This happened, for instance, to Maria Callas longtime co-performer Tito Gobbi).