THE MET: LIVE IN HD COMES TO THE CLARK WITH THE CLASSIC TOSCA

For Immediate Release

October 23, 2013

WILLIAMSTOWN, MA—Tosca, the famed opera that includes some of Puccini’s most beloved arias, airs live from The Metropolitan Opera at the Sterling and Francine Clark Art Institute on Saturday, November 9 at 12:55 pm. Tickets are $25 ($22 members, $18 students) and can be ordered online at clarkart.edu or by calling 413 458 0524.

The timeless verismo score is well served by an exceptional cast, led by Patricia Racette in the title role of the jealous diva, opposite Roberto Alagna as her lover, Cavaradossi. George Gagnidze is the villainous Scarpia.

Tosca premiered in Rome on January 14, 1900. Twenty performances followed, all before packed audiences. While some critics dismissed the opera as a confusing melodrama—including Joseph Kerman, who famously called it a "shabby little shocker" in the 1950s—its powerful score and original orchestration have been widely acknowledged, and it remains one of the most popular operas performed today.

Approximate running time is 215 minutes. Due to the construction activity and limited parking at the Clark, visitors should plan to arrive twenty minutes before the performance.

About the Clark

Set amidst 140 acres in the Berkshires, the Clark is one of the few major art museums that also serves as a leading international center for research and scholarship. The Clark presents public and education programs and organizes groundbreaking exhibitions that advance new scholarship. The Clark’s research and academic programs include an international fellowship program and conferences. Together with Williams College, the Clark sponsors one of the nation’s leading master’s programs in art history.

The Clark is located at 225 South Street in Williamstown, Massachusetts. Stone Hill Center galleries are open; admiss