Starring: Vito Priante, Emily D’Angelo, Santiago Ballerini, Renato Girolami
Director: Joan Font
Music: Gioachino Rossini
Libretto: Cesare Sterbini, based on Le Barbier de Séville by Pierre Beaumarchais
Venue: Four Seasons Centre for the Performing Arts
Run Information: The Barber of Seville is currently running through February 7, 2020.
Rating: ★★★
Joan Font’s direction falters, but conductor Speranza Scappucci shines.
Rossini’s The Barber of Seville is perhaps the finest example of Italian comic opera, filled with broad humour, over-the-top characters, and luscious bel canto melodies. It seems almost impossible to make this opera more zany or madcap than it already is. But that is exactly what is happening in the Canadian Opera Company’s revival of its 2015 production.
Director Joan Font, from the Spanish theatre troupe Els Comediants, has created a Barber that is inspired by its commedia dell’arte roots and features multiple nods to the Spanish street theatre tradition, from colourful costumes and clown-like make-up, to circus acrobatics. But at times, Font’s production feels too ambitious; it competes with, rather than complements, Rossini’s work. It is almost as if Font doesn’t trust the superfluous humour already embedded in the opera. Rather than playing off the existing broad comedy — such as the eccentric villains and mistaken identities — , Font adds his own gags for cheap laughs.
There is tree painting, falling chandeliers, and a whole schtick involving the disguised Count Almaviva (Santiago Ballerini) rowing his lover Rosina (Emily D’Angelo) away from Doctor Bartolo (Renato Girolami), her crazy guardian who desperately wants to marry her; the latter two sketches uncannily resemble those from the musical The Phantom of the Opera. All of this adds to the feeling that this isn’t a production of The Barber of Seville, but rather, a parody of it.
Xevi Dorca’s staging and comedic choreography fill every inch of Joan Guillén’s drab and lifeless set, which, with its off-kilter proportions and sharp geometric lines, resembles an unfinished Picasso painting. It is difficult to comprehend that the colourful, eye-popping costumes, which are far more reminiscent of Spanish street theatre, are also the work of Guillén. Albert Faura’s almost non-existent lighting design also adds to the unfocused aesthetic of this production.
There are, however, times when Font’s vision breathes new life into this work from 1816. He has cranked up the paranoia in this Barber, especially among the men. Figaro, sung vivaciously and effortlessly by Vito Priante, seems subsumed by his narcissism. His famous aria “Largo al factotum” is staged ingeniously, with multiple chorus members dressed as Figaro popping up all around the set attending to citizens’ needs, while Figaro stands boasting about his talents.
Then, there is the petite Santiago Ballerini as Count Almaviva, Rosina’s secret lover who disguises himself (multiple times in a variety of ways) to sneak past her guardian. After a shaky start, Ballerini settled into the role and let his bright tenor voice sail over the orchestra. He, along with Renato Girolami as Doctor Bartolo, make a wonderful comedic pair as their characters’ paranoia ratchets up the tension: Ballerini’s Almaviva is focused solely on seeking Rosina, while Girolami’s Bartolo will go to any extreme to keep the young Rosina for himself. Despite the pair’s strong acting chops, Font provides minimal direction during these comedic scenes, leaving them hopelessly wandering across the cavernous stage.
Rosina, played by Canadian mezzo-soprano Emily D’Angelo, is caught between the men’s paranoia and is the sole voice of reason. D’Angelo’s rich voice and wide vocal range is on clear display in this role; it is clear why she is considered a rising star on the international opera stage after winning a slew of competitions. Her nuanced “Una voce poco fa” is an impeccable showcase of her talent. With even more experience and maturity, she will likely further develop her coloratura technique, which felt slightly forced on opening night.
Rounding out the solid main cast are the wonderful Brandon Cedel as Basilio, Doctor Bartolo’s music teacher and confidante, and Simona Genga as the maid Berta. Other than Priante’s opening aria, it is Cedel who is given the only other moment of memorable staging, in a production filled with otherwise bland direction. His “La Calunnia”, an aria about how Doctor Bartolo can use rumour to discredit the count, is sung with gusto by Cedel and is staged theatrically on top of a piano, almost as a play-within-an-opera.
But the real star of this Barber is not on stage, but in the orchestra pit. In her COC debut, Italian conductor Speranza Scappucci received the loudest ovation of the performance for her luminous interpretation of Rossini’s famous overture. Her virtuosity continued at the same intensity until the final downbeat of the opera. Every nuance from the music was not just played, but heightened. The music, in a way, took on the role of another character, with its own personality and playing off the energy (but never hindering) the actors onstage. Under the direction of Scappucci, the COC orchestra has never sounded more wonderful. If only the same could be said about the vision of the rest of the production.
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