LONDON -
Luciano Pavarotti, the world's most famous tenor, made an emotional return to London's Royal Opera House Friday, dedicating the rare performance to his mother who died in Italy just the day before.
While his voice sounded strained at times and his movements were often stiff, this was more about Pavarotti than the Puccini opera he sang, and a packed Covent Garden gave him and an able supporting cast a stirring standing ovation.
The portly singer's personal tragedy only added drama to a performance already eagerly awaited by fans and critics, amid intense speculation that the four-night run could be his last outing at an opera house he sees as his spiritual home. "I spent a wonderful and beautiful evening at Covent Garden that will remain in my memory for many years to come," he said backstage after the performance of Giacomo Puccini's "Tosca."
"All performances at this opera house are very special for me and any singer, but to me of course tonight was an evening of very mixed emotions."
Pavarotti rushed back to his home town of Modena in northern Italy Thursday where Adele Venturi died aged 86, but returned to Britain in time for the sell-out show. He returns to his homeland Saturday for the funeral on Sunday and is back in London again Monday.
SUPERSTAR STATUS
Advanced tickets for the run of "Tosca" sold out almost overnight, fetching up to 175 pounds ($250) at the official price and a reported 3,000 pounds on the street.
Hundreds of opera goers also queued outside the newly refurbished theater early Friday to get one of 67 seats sold on the day of each performance.
Natalya and Grigory, a middle-aged couple living in Britain after they fled the 1994-1996 war in Russia's breakaway republic of Chechnya, were among the diehard fans desperate to catch a glimpse of their idol. "This is something special," Natalya said. "We love the whole experience of going to the opera, and this will just be better than usual."
It has been 38 years since Pavarotti's Covent Garden debut launched his international career. That time he was rushed to London to fill in for a sick Giuseppe di Stefano to sing Rodolfo in Puccini's "La Boheme." "This is where the international career really began," he told Reuters earlier this week. I will forever be indebted to Giuseppe di Stefano."
Despite his 66 years of age and impaired movement after knee and hip surgery, the tenor widely credited with bringing opera to the masses with stadium shows and popular recordings refused to concede that the end of his career was nigh. "I will know when my voice is ready to retire and will not go on beyond that time," he said. "As far as the last appearance at Covent Garden goes, I really can't say. I'm just going to enjoy singing Cavaradossi."
His lover Tosca was sung powerfully by Carol Vaness and Sergei Leiferkus played a menacing Baron Scarpia.
