A DOWN TO EARTH FIGARO

ALL ABOUT THE ARTS

LE NOZZE DI FIGARO

MUSIC BY W.A. MOZART              LIBRETTO BY LOENZO DA PONTE

A ROYAL OPERA HOUSE PRODUCTION

ROYAL OPERA HOUSE ORCHESTRA AND CHORUS

CONDUCTOR: ANTONIO PAPPANO

DIRECTOR: DAVID Mc VICAR

DESIGNER: TANYA MC CALLIN

WITH EDWIN SCHROTT, MIAH PERSSON, DOROTHEA ROSCHMANN, GERALD FINLEY, RINAT SHAHAN, JONATHAN VEIRA, GRACIELA ARAYA, PHILIP LANGRIDGE, ANA JAMES, FRANCIS EGERTON, and JEREMY WHITE

The ROYAL OPERA HOUSE production of LE NOZZE DI FIGARO – better known on this side of the ocean by its English title: The Marriage of Figaro has much in it that deserves unqualified praise, above all its cast of seasoned singing actors. There’s that and almost no draconian cuts, so that Don Basilio’s and Marcellina’s  Act IV arias are preserved and very nicely respectively delivered by Philip Langridge and Graciela Araya.

The eleven principals excel in first class vocalism all the while fleshing out strong characterizations injected with humor and down-to-earth humanity.

There’s Edwin Schrott as Figaro and Gerald Finley as Count Almaviva, two excellent bass-baritones who bring out the danger in their relationship and imbue their singing with menace while singing elegantly.

Likewise the mistress-maid dynamic is performed by Dorothea Roschmann and Miah Persson with cystal clear clarity and injected with genuine affection. In addition both sopranos sing gloriously, and their connection to Rinat Shahan’s endearing Cherubino fluctuates from maternal to carnal.

The supporting roles of Dr. Bartolo and Marcellina become in the capable hands of Jonathan Veira and Graciela Araya real human beings whose Act III discovery of their true relationship to each other and to Figaro wins our hearts.  Even the tiny roles of Don Curzio (Francis Egerton), Barbarina (Ana James) and Antonio (Jeremy White) are flawlessly rendered in David Mc Vicar’s production.

There’s no question that the vast interiors of the Castle of Aguas Frescas might be architecturally accurate and, further, that they are meant to convey by designer Tanya Mc Callin a certain feeling of isolation amongst its quarreling inhabitants, although I could not make head or tails of the puzzling change from Act III’s palatial hall to Act IV’s neither indoors nor outdoors environment.  Mc Callin’s choice of early 19th century costumes places the action in a post-Napoleonic sunless Seville where the loathsome “droit du seigneur” is up for discussion and the Goyesque, high-waist silhouette allows the women a modicum of corset-less freedom.

David McVicar’s staging fully succeeds in sparing the audience any clowning or posturing on the part of the singers. Other than the silent character of the old woman who aimlessly wanders around toward the end of the opera I found his directorial choices unimpeachable.

Antonio Pappano led the orchestra and cast with untiring energy and Mozartian elegance.  

This DVD is part of the Royal Opera Collection (  OA1337BD / OABD7291BD).    

Rafael de Acha    ALL ABOUT THE ARTS                    

Published by ALL ABOUT THE ARTS

Rafael de Acha has enjoyed a distinguished career in the arts as a performer, stage director, producer, and educator. He was born and grew up in Cuba. At the age of 17 he moved to the United States to study Drama at the University of Minnesota, and later Languages at L.A. City College, Music at the Juilliard School of Music, at the University of Cincinnati’s College Conservatory of Music, and at the New England Conservatory of Music, from which he received the Master's degree. He has taught courses on the History of Music at the University of Miami’s Frost School of Music and at Florida International University, and contributed writings and reviews to Seen and Heard International (www.seenandheard-international.com ) and to this blog. He co-founded the award-winning New Theatre in Coral Gables, Florida, where he produced and staged twenty seasons of classical and contemporary theater, including fifty world premieres of plays that went on to have international and national productions on and off Broadway, including Ana in the Tropics by Nilo Cruz (Pulitzer Prize for Drama 2002 and Tony Nomination 2003.) In 2006 he was presented with a citation from The Dade County Cultural Affairs Council for “trailblazing contributions to the arts in South Florida.”