Erwin Schrott sings Scarpia tonight for only second time

Erwin Schrott as Scarpia in Berlin

Bass-barihunk Erwin Schrott waited until February of last year before he felt comfortable enough to debut the role of the evil police chief Scarpia in Puccini's Tosca. That debut happened in Berlin and now he's slated for a series of performances of the plum role, beginning tonight at the Vienna State Opera in an all-star cast that includes Angela Gheorghiu  as Tosca and Massimo Giordano as Mario Cavaradossi.

Future performances of the role will be in Munich, the Royal Opera House in London and Madrid. Additional performances in Vienna will be on January 12, 13 and 16 and tickets are available online.

After his run as Scarpia, the Uruguayan singer remains in Vienna for three performances of Méphistophélès in Gounod's Faust, running from January 25-February 2. He'll reprise that role in Munich beginning on April 29. In between those performances, he will sing Procida in Verdi's Les Vêpres siciliennes, also in Munich.