"I lived for art, I lived for love. – And yet the singer Floria Tosca finds herself in a maelstrom of betrayal, torture and murder from which there is no escape: Tosca tries to save her lover, the painter Mario Cavaradossi, from the clutches of the brutal police chief Scarpia. The latter demands a night together as the price for Tosca's release. After that, she and Cavaradossi are to be allowed to leave Rome unmolested, covered up by the mock execution of her lover. Tosca agrees, but stabs Scarpia in the heat of the moment. But even in death, the scheming police chief has the reins of events firmly in his hand. Based on Victorien Sardou's drama, Giacomo Puccini wrote Tosca , one of the most famous and popular operas in the repertoire to date. Passionate music interspersed with verismo elements, captivating arias such as Vissi d'arte and E lucevan le stelle , a An emotional triangular constellation and a captivating political background make this work an opera thriller that has thrilled audiences since its premiere in 1900.

After a one-year break, the St. Gallen Concert and Theater will be performing Puccini's opera in the monastery courtyard again in summer 2025. The team around the Argentinian director Marcos Darbyshire, who already staged Piazzolla's tango opera María de Buenos Aires in the UM!BAU, is devoting itself to this gripping opera story about love, jealousy and murder and is bringing the Castel Sant'Angelo and the church of Sant'Andrea della Valle to life in front of the collegiate church.