Six Sopranos Headline Met Opera's 'Tosca' Revival Opening Nov. 1

Puccini's "Tosca" returns to the Metropolitan Opera on Nov. 1 for 25 performances, running through May 27, 2026, with six leading sopranos sharing the title role across three casts.

The opening night belongs to a newcomer. Saioa Hernández makes her company debut as Floria Tosca on Nov. 1, alongside tenor SeokJong Baek as the painter Cavaradossi and baritone Quinn Kelsey as Scarpia. Oksana Lyniv conducts the first six performances of the run.

Who sings when?

The revival unfolds in three distinct casts:

• Nov. 1 cast: Saioa Hernández (Tosca, company debut), SeokJong Baek (Cavaradossi), Quinn Kelsey (Scarpia); Oksana Lyniv conducts the first six performances.
• Jan. 6 cast: Aleksandra Kurzak reprises her Tosca with Piotr Beczała as Cavaradossi; George Gagnidze and Željko Lučić share Scarpia. Principal Guest Conductor Daniele Rustioni and Music Director Yannick Nézet-Séguin conduct.
• April 28 cast: Three sopranos — Natalya Romaniw in her company debut, Eleonora Buratto and Sondra Radvanovsky — share the title role. Roberto Alagna and Matthew Polenzani alternate as Cavaradossi, while Amartuvshin Enkhbat and Željko Lučić sing Scarpia. Karel Mark Chichon and Marco Armiliato conduct.

What does this change for audiences?

For New York opera-goers, the rotation turns a standard repertory revival into a season-long comparison piece. A listener could hear Hernández's debut in November, Kurzak's established interpretation in January, and three more Toscas — including Radvanovsky, one of the house's most reliable stars — in the spring, all within a single season.

The casting also marks two notable firsts. Hernández and Romaniw both make Metropolitan Opera debuts in this run, giving the company a chance to introduce two new sopranos in one of the most demanding roles in the Italian repertoire.

Broadcasts extend the reach

Listeners outside New York have five chances to hear the revival live. The Nov. 6, Jan. 9, April 28, May 4 and May 27 performances will stream on the SiriusXM app, and the Jan. 9 performance will additionally air on The Robert K. Johnson Foundation–Metropolitan Opera International Radio Network.

The conducting roster carries its own weight. Nézet-Séguin, the Met's Music Director, shares the podium with Principal Guest Conductor Daniele Rustioni in the winter cast, while Lyniv, Chichon and Armiliato cover the remaining performances — five conductors in total across the run.

With 25 performances stretching over nearly seven months, the revival ranks among the longer commitments of the Met season, and the final performance on May 27, 2026 — broadcast live — will close the run with Radvanovsky's cast on hand.