On June 12 at 8:30 p.m. in the Opera Hall, one of the greatest opera tragedies - Giacomo Puccini’s "Tosca" - will be performed. As part of the “Stage Under the Stars” festival, the audience will experience a story in which love, power, jealousy, and self-sacrifice intertwine in a dramatic clash, while Puccini’s music transforms every emotion into an unforgettable experience.
One of the most powerful characters in the opera is Baron Scarpia - a figure who embodies unchecked power and moral decay. The role is played by Alexander Krunev, the doyen of the Bulgarian opera scene - an artist with an impressive international career and extensive experience in portraying this complex character. On the eve of the performance, we speak with him not only about Scarpia, but also about the eternal conflict between love and power, the artist’s responsibility toward great works, and the magic of opera.
Scarpia is often seen as the embodiment of evil. When you’re developing this character, do you look for a human justification for his actions, and where do you think the line between monster and human lies?
To me, there is nothing human about Baron Scarpia, and I cannot find any justification for his actions. From everything I know about this character, he is a man willing to walk over dead bodies to achieve his goals—whether through power, money, or murder. Everything about him is subservient to his desire for control and the relentless pursuit of his own desires. That is why I cannot find a positive side that might soften his character. Of course, for me, as an actor, the role is extremely interesting. It is one of those complex stage characters that offer immense opportunities for acting presence and interpretation. I have played Scarpia many times—in various productions, both in Japan and Italy, as well as on stages across Europe—and each time I discover new nuances in his dramatic nature. If we’re talking about the line between monster and human, I believe that there are both light and dark sides in every person. The question is which one we allow to come to the forefront. Personally, I try in my conscious life to do good things, not bad ones.
“Tosca” contrasts love and power as the two forces that drive the world. Do you think that the thirst for power is a distorted form of the desire for love and recognition, or are these entirely different human needs?
For me, love should be the driving force in the world. Of course, it has many different dimensions - love for the person next to you, for family, for art, for life. It is love that has the power to create and unite. Power, on the other hand, often has a destructive effect. I have observed that many people change when they gain it, and unfortunately, this change is rarely for the better. On the contrary - it often makes them more akin to characters like Scarpia than to truly dignified and noble individuals. I attribute this to human nature. When a person feels they are stronger or have more influence, they are sometimes tempted to impose their will on the weaker. In various contexts, this is precisely what leads to conflict, violence, and even war. That is why I believe that power should not be the guiding principle in life. If it is not subject to humanity, morality, and love, it can easily become a destructive force.
Scarpia embodies the thirst for power and the abuse of it. At what point does an actor feel that he has fully embodied a villain like him?
Years ago, I took part in a production of *Tosca* in England. At the end of the second act, when my character had already been killed, there was an extremely heated reaction from the audience. In addition to the applause, there was foot-stomping and shouts of outrage directed at the character of Scarpia. For me, this was a huge source of satisfaction, because it meant that I had succeeded in convincing the audience of his villainous nature. For an artist, that is the highest praise. As for villains in real life, I don’t think it’s up to us to punish them. Only God has that right. Our task is to be humble and good people. If we do not blindly strive for power and money - as my character does, believing that everything can be bought - then our lives will be more orderly. In this sense, Scarpia is a composite image of human weaknesses that we still see very often around us today.
The performance was supposed to take place outdoors as part of the “Stage Under the Stars” festival. Unfortunately, inclement weather forced a change of venue, and the tragedy of "Tosca" will now be staged at the Ruse Opera House. Do you think that when the characters are not under a theatre ceiling but beneath the real night sky - a symbol of eternity before which human passions seem both immense and insignificant - the sense of tragedy is intensified?
What can I say? The very story of "Tosca" essentially ends under the open sky. I’ve been to the spot in Rome where, according to the plot, Tosca throws herself from the tower, and that gives a special sense of the work’s drama. In fact, whether we perform on an open-air stage or in a theatre, we all live under the same sky, under the stars, and, if I may put it that way, at the feet of the Lord. That is why, for me, it makes no real difference whether the performance is outdoors or indoors. The most important thing is to remain faithful to the author and his message. We, the performers, are the intermediaries between the creator and the audience. Without our stage presence, the work would remain merely text and music on paper. That is why we must be honest with the author, follow his vision, and serve the work with respect. Precisely because Puccini is an exceptional dramatist of human emotions, an incredible musician, and a genius composer, our task is to convey his world as authentically as possible - whether we are beneath a theatre ceiling or the real night sky.
