“The Marriage of Figaro” is a frothy upstairs-downstairs opera in which a lot of fun is made of masters and servants.
Based on a controversial 1784 play by Beaumarchais, “Figaro” was part of a trilogy written in a time of social unrest. In the tumult leading up to the French Revolution, Beaumarchais crafted works aiming directly at the inequities of a rigid class structure. His comedic touch didn’t fool Louis XVI who banned the play outright. But the Queen, Marie Antoinette, saw things differently and the play went forward in Paris. In Austria, Emperor Joseph II banned the play but somehow let Mozart and his librettist persuade him to let the opera open. Go figure.
A few stormy years later, Napoleon relished Beaumarchais’s impertinence and called “Figaro” a “revolution in action.”
When Mozart and librettist Lorenzo da Ponte collaborated on their opera, it didn’t take much to draw crowds. “Le Nozze di Figaro” opened in Vienna in 1786 and became the talk of Europe.
Fast forward 228 years, and “Figaro” has a smart new look at the Metropolitan Opera. Conceived and directed by the British theatrical genius, Richard Eyre, the Met’s version time travels to Spain between the 20th century’s world wars. Count Almaviva’s estate sits just outside Seville. And in designer Rob Howell’s hands, a revolving set reveals the mansion’s elegant rooms, gardens and servant’s quarters – all done up in exotic Moorish design. Period costumes couch the aristocrats in smart suits and silky gowns.
Old rules and outdated social contracts lie at the core of the play and the opera. The medieval right of the master to have sex with a servant girl before her wedding day, Le droit de Seigneur, drives both.
During the Met’s overture, Director Eyre underscores the point with some newly invented stage business. A disheveled servant girl races across the stage trying to get back into uniform while her lecherous master, the count in question, chases her in his scarlet bathrobe. Plot point taken.
A young cast is also part of the buzz for this new interpretation of “Figaro.” Russian bass-baritone Ildar Abdrazakov is a hunk of a Figaro. The wily German soprano Marlis Petersen creates a virtuous Susanna who lives by her wits and is smarter than her husband to be. The American soprano Amanda Majeski, 29, sings the forlorn countess, making Cherubino’s infatuation more believable. The adolescent page-cum-intern is sung by mezzo Isabel Leonard. According to all the reviews, the Swedish baritone Peter Mattei relishes his role as the libidinous count. Since Mattei is also known for his Don Giovanni, one can understand why.
This opera buffa in four acts is new no matter how many times you see it. The Mozart-da Ponte, Eyre-Levine production will be sung in Italian with English subtitles and runs 3 hours and 52 minutes.
jreynolds@durangoherald.com. Judith Reynolds is a Durango writer, art historian and arts journalist.
If you go
The Met: Live in HD screening of “Le Nozze di Figaro” will take place at 10:55 a.m. Saturday in the Vallecito Room of the Fort Lewis College Student Union, 1000 Rim Drive. Tickets are available at www.durangoconcerts.com, by calling 247-7657 or at the Durango Welcome Center, Eighth Street and Main Avenue.
