Which composer's opera 'Tosca' is set in Rome?

The opera Tosca was composed by Giacomo Puccini and is set in Rome. Its three-act story unfolds in June 1800, during a period when Napoleon's campaigns were reshaping political control in Italy.

Puccini based the opera on Victorien Sardou's French play La Tosca. He secured the rights in 1895, then worked with librettists Luigi Illica and Giuseppe Giacosa to condense the long drama into a tightly structured Italian opera. Tosca premiered at Rome's Teatro Costanzi on January 14, 1900.

The plot moves through recognizable Roman locations, including the church of Sant'Andrea della Valle, the Farnese Palace, and the Castel Sant'Angelo. The opera is often remembered for its intense combination of political intrigue, torture, murder, and suicide, as well as the arias “Vissi d'arte” and “E lucevan le stelle.” Donizetti, Rossini, and Verdi were also major Italian opera composers, but none wrote Tosca.