United Kingdom Rossini, Il barbiere di Siviglia: Soloists, Metropolitan Opera Chorus and Orchestra / Giacomo Sagripanti (conductor). Metropolitan Opera, New York, 15.4.2025. (RP)
Rossini’s Il barbiere di Siviglia is back at the Metropolitan Opera, and what a delight it is. Alchemy didn’t make this magic happen, just the tried-and-true: it only took a star-studded cast, traditional staging and a lighter-than-air performance of Rossini’s brilliant score.
This was Bartlett Sher’s first production for the Met, and it feels as if he had still been finding his way through the operatic thicket in 2006. The sets are basic, consisting of a series of doors that can be repositioned to create the necessary scenes efficiently and effectively, and orange trees add color and texture. There were a few surprises, such as a large anvil descending at the end of Act I, apparently portending doom for someone. There was also an explosion in the next act, signaling that the denouement was imminent. Sher’s directorial excesses were minimal, as such things go.
Superlative craftsmanship came into play with Catherine Zuber’s costumes, especially those for Rosina and Dr. Bartolo. The oversized hat worn by Don Basilio and by Count Almaviva, disguised as Don Alonzo, is outrageous.
Davide Luciano is a terrific Figaro, navigating the role with litheness and zest. He arrived on stage atop a cart drawn by a bevy of women, and it opens to display the wares he sells. There is a donkey, but it lags behind the cart, tethered by a rope. Luciano tossed off ‘Largo al factotum’ with aplomb, the first indication of just how fine a Figaro he is.
Isabel Leonard embodies glamour as Rosina with the mega-watt beauty and charisma associated with Hollywood stars of a bygone era. There is no doubt that this Rosina will outsmart her guardian, Dr. Bartolo, and marry the mysterious man who has won her heart. Leonard’s singing was equally alluring: each of Rosina’s arias was a showstopper with her winning combination of bewitching coloratura and vocal luster.
Another Met favorite, Lawrence Brownlee, was Count Almaviva. Disguised as Lindoro, Brownlee’s Count was tense and temperamental, although his tenor was meltingly beautiful in ‘Ecco, ridente in cielo’ as he serenaded Rosina. Lawrence was at his best and funniest as Don Alonso, where his demeanor and voice were all lightness and joy, as was his rapid-fire coloratura and ringing high notes.
Nicola Alaimo has not appeared at the Met since 2016, when he was Taddeo in Rossini’s L’Italiana in Algeri. This has been New York’s loss, measured by Alaimo’s wonderful, vainglorious Bartolo. Alexander Vinogradov’s Don Basilio was conniving, but not quite as old and cantankerous as is often the case. His ‘La calunnia è un venticello’ was a masterclass in comic timing. Eleomar Cuello’s forthright Fiorello portends a bright future for this rising baritone.
Soprano Kathleen O’Mara made her Met debut in this performance as Berta, Rosina’s governess. Her Berta was more bemused by everyone’s antics than angered, and it carried over into a subtle ‘Il vecchiotto cerca moglie’ that was further lightened by the youthful gleam of her voice. As Ambrogio, Jan Dunn, also making his Met debut, was a master of comic timing with his cadaverous looks, threadbare costume and thinning mane of dirty white hair.
Conductor Giacomo Sagripanti also debuted at the Met with this performance. From the opening measures of the overture, he proved to value refinement as much as drama. The Met orchestra fulfilled this promise with playing epitomized by lightness, transparency and beauty. Sagripanti provided the perfect setting for this wonderful cast to work Rossini’s magic.
Rick Perdian
Cast:
Fiorello – Eleomar Cuello
Ambrogio – Jay Dunn
Count Almaviva – Lawrence Brownlee
Figaro – Davide Luciano
Rosina – Isabel Leonard
Dr. Bartolo – Nicola Alaimo
Don Basilio – Alexander Vinogradov
Berta – Kathleen O’Mara
Officer – Jonghyun Park
Production:
Director – Bartlett Sher
Revival Stage director – Kathleen Smith Belcher
Sets – Michael Yeargan
Costumes – Catherine Zuber
Lighting – Christopher Akerlind
Revival director – Kathleen Smith
Chorus director – Tilman Michael