Lucey doesn’t see Scarpia as just plain evil. It’s grounded in the given circumstances of the piece.” “We’re not setting it on the moon, there’s no flying angels or anything. “We want to faithfully tell the story of Puccini’s opera,” she said. With corruption and a woman fighting back against sexual assault, Tosca, although set in 18th century Rome, is a tale for now, Lucey says. It’s a contemporary issue about remaining morally upright in a corrupt society.” “In the opera, Floria Tosca is a jealous artist and they’re all trying to make their way where no one’s ethics go uncompromised. But no one is untouched, and it filters into your life,” she said. “Russia has always suffered from endemic corruption, but I thought I’m just there to study arts, I’m a moral, ethical person, and it won’t affect me. Lucey spent five years in Russia studying theater, and she drew on her experience there to direct Tosca. From the opening chords of the opera, the audience understands we’re living in Scarpia’s world of treacherous influence, Lucey says. The drama involves political prisoners, deceit, murder, and Tosca’s fiery defiance and rebellion, protecting the freedom and autonomy she holds dear in the face of Scarpia’s lust for her. Tosca tells the story of opera singer Florio Tosca (Carmen Giannattasio in her company debut), painter Mario Cavaradossi (Brian Jagde), and a corrupt police chief, Baron Scarpia (Scott Hendricks). When general director Matthew Shilvock asked her if she’d be interested in directing Tosca, she had plenty of ideas about staging the production, one that has a special connection to the San Francisco Opera- Tosca was presented in the company’s first season it opened the War Memorial Opera House in 1932 and a new production premiered on the company’s 50th anniversary in 1972.
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She made her directorial debut there last year with La Traviata. Lucey has been assistant director for several productions at the Opera, including Girls of the Golden West, La Bohème, and Sweeney Todd.
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It starts off at a high level, and it doesn’t let up.” “It’s so taut and the drama is so high and the music is just perfection. Shawna Lucey has strong feeling about Giacomo Puccini’s Tosca, which she directs for the San Francisco Opera October 3-30.