Puccini's tragic opera Tosca takes place in 1800 in the midst of political struggles between France, Rome and Austria. Set in Rome the story follows Cavaradossi, a painter who inspires jealousy in his lover, Floria Tosca, when he uses another woman as a model in one of his paintings. As Scarpia, chief of secret police, enters the scene to search for a political refugee whom Cavaradossi is shielding, he meddles even further in Cavaradossi and Tosca's relationship. The political dramas of the early 19th century are mirrored through Tosca's struggle for her lover in this epic and wrenching classic. With its beautiful lyrical arias and realistic depictions of violence, Tosca has become on of the most highly performed opera's in the world.
