Difference between revisions of "La Tosca"
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| − | ''[[ La Tosca]]'' is a French melodramatic play by Victorien Sardou (1831-1908) [https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Victorien_Sardou]. | + | ''[[ La Tosca]]'' is a French melodramatic play in five acts by Victorien Sardou (1831-1908) [https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Victorien_Sardou]. |
The play is sometimes referred to simply as '''''[[Tosca]]''''', but that title is more famously used for the opera by Giacomo Puccini (1900), based on the play. | The play is sometimes referred to simply as '''''[[Tosca]]''''', but that title is more famously used for the opera by Giacomo Puccini (1900), based on the play. | ||
'''This entry refers specifically to Sardou's play. For information on the opera, see the entry on ''[[Tosca]]''''' | '''This entry refers specifically to Sardou's play. For information on the opera, see the entry on ''[[Tosca]]''''' | ||
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== The original text == | == The original text == | ||
| − | + | Set in Rome in 1800 the play was first performed on 24 November 1887 at the Théâtre de la Porte Saint-Martin in Paris, with Sarah Bernhardt in the title role and would become one of Sardou's most successful plays, toured by Bernhardt throughout the world. By the 1920s it had fallen into obscurity, but Giacomo Puccini's operatic version (''[[Tosca]]'') endures. | |
| − | |||
==Translations and adaptations== | ==Translations and adaptations== | ||
| − | The libretto for Giacomo Puccini's famous opera '''''[[Tosca]]''''' (1900) is based on Sardou's French play. | + | The libretto for Giacomo Puccini's famous opera '''''[[Tosca]]''''' (1900) is based on Sardou's French play. '''(For more on the opera, see the entry on ''[[Tosca]]'')''' |
| − | ' | + | Besides Puccini's version, several other adaptations have been done of the play, among them two for the Japanese theatre and an English burlesque, ''[[Tra-La-La Tosca]]'' (all of which premiered in the 1890s). There have also been several film versions. |
== Performance history in South Africa == | == Performance history in South Africa == | ||
| − | 1901: Produced (and billed as ''[[La Tosca|Tosca]]'') in the [[Good Hope Theatre]], Cape Town, during September by the [[Wheeler Theatre Company]] with American actress [[Nance O'Neill]] in the leading role. | + | 1901: Produced (and billed simply as ''[[La Tosca|Tosca]]'') in the [[Good Hope Theatre]], Cape Town, during September by the [[Wheeler Theatre Company]] with American actress [[Nance O'Neill]] in the leading role. |
| − | 1902: Produced in the [[Good Hope Theatre]] by the [[Wheeler Theatre Company]] during February, once more with [[Nance O'Neill]] in the lead. | + | 1902: Produced again in the [[Good Hope Theatre]] by the [[Wheeler Theatre Company]] during February, once more with [[Nance O'Neill]] in the lead. |
== Sources == | == Sources == | ||
Revision as of 06:30, 24 April 2021
La Tosca is a French melodramatic play in five acts by Victorien Sardou (1831-1908) [1].
The play is sometimes referred to simply as Tosca, but that title is more famously used for the opera by Giacomo Puccini (1900), based on the play.
This entry refers specifically to Sardou's play. For information on the opera, see the entry on Tosca
Contents
The original text
Set in Rome in 1800 the play was first performed on 24 November 1887 at the Théâtre de la Porte Saint-Martin in Paris, with Sarah Bernhardt in the title role and would become one of Sardou's most successful plays, toured by Bernhardt throughout the world. By the 1920s it had fallen into obscurity, but Giacomo Puccini's operatic version (Tosca) endures.
Translations and adaptations
The libretto for Giacomo Puccini's famous opera Tosca (1900) is based on Sardou's French play. (For more on the opera, see the entry on Tosca)
Besides Puccini's version, several other adaptations have been done of the play, among them two for the Japanese theatre and an English burlesque, Tra-La-La Tosca (all of which premiered in the 1890s). There have also been several film versions.
Performance history in South Africa
1901: Produced (and billed simply as Tosca) in the Good Hope Theatre, Cape Town, during September by the Wheeler Theatre Company with American actress Nance O'Neill in the leading role.
1902: Produced again in the Good Hope Theatre by the Wheeler Theatre Company during February, once more with Nance O'Neill in the lead.
Sources
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/La_Tosca
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tosca
D.C. Boonzaier, 1923. "My playgoing days – 30 years in the history of the Cape Town stage", in SA Review, 9 March and 24 August 1932. (Reprinted in Bosman 1980: pp. 374-439.)
F.C.L. Bosman. 1980. Drama en Toneel in Suid-Afrika, Deel II, 1856-1912. Pretoria: J.L. van Schaik: pp.203-205
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