Il Barbiere di Seviglia

April 25, 2004 by · Leave a Comment
Filed under: Fancy Shmancy, Music 

On Friday night, my wife and I went to see the Barber of Seville presented by the Boheme Opera company at the Trenton War Memorial in Trenton, NJ.

The performance was excellent. Most of the actors (and I call them that intentionally, rather than singers or soloists) were very good. And it was FUNNY!

The opera is a comedy by design. It’s clear to me that Warner Bros. didn’t have to work hard to have the Bugs Bunny version be hilarious. In fact, it was clear to me that some of the gags in this production were stolen from the cartoon (or maybe it’s vice versa).

I won’t go into the story here – this page has a synopsis. You may want to read it before finishing this review.

Constantinos Yiannoudes filled the baritone part of Figaro. He did VERY well in his Boheme Opera mainstage debut. Figaro is a relatively easy part to play comedically in this opera – it’s impossible to be too over the top. The role of the title barber is a tough one to sing – he has to do his most famous and hardest aria (“Largo al Factotum”) as he walks onto stage for the first time in the first act. The audience gave him a well-deserved and long round of applause until he was forced to gesture for a stop. He was also very funny in the little “extra” comedy that this production added to the script. When he encouraged Count Almaviva/Lindoro to sing to his Rosina, he had to find something to sing. He finally walked up to the box centerstage and asks for a piece of music. He sings “Some Enchanted Evening” and then complains rapidly in Italian that he wants a piece “en Italiana”.

Mika Shigematsu sang the soprano part of Rosina. She also did a good job of comedic acting. Unfortunately, her voice was rather weak in the first and second acts. She improved for the third act, and turned in a good performance.

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The show was stolen by John Easterlin singing the tenor part of Count Almaviva pretending to be Lindoro wooing Rosina. His singing was extremely good (possibly the best of the cast), but that was overshadowed by his comedic acting! He could easily get a role as a comedy actor – preferably in a sitcom with lots of slapstick. He received the loudest applause at the end – and it was totally deserved.

The singing was powerful. No amplification was used in a full-sized theatre. I was seated in the 6th row of the right hand side of the house. When the singers faced us directly, I could actually feel the pressure of their voices.

Those who have read my story of a previous trip to the opera (A Night at the Opera) are probably wondering if any unplanned hilarity occured. I have to disappoint you on that score – as far as I can tell the production was staged perfectly. There were only two problems that marred the whole experience. For some reason, the printer failed to deliver enough programs, and only those patrons who arrived for the pre-show lecture were given them. I have had to use an article printed on Friday in the Trenton Times to keep my details correct. The other problem was a begging speech made by a woman from the opera company for 10 minutes before the overture began – begging for money to support the company and make sure that it will be able to continue next year. This was inappropriate at a performance from a company that calls itself “professional” on its website. I did enjoy the opera and would have been willing to make a donation – unfortunately, I was unable to find out HOW to make a donation by reading the program!

I did hear two Bugs Bunny references. My wife and I arrived early enough to have to sit in the lobby before seating began. Two men entered, and I heard one of them clearly saying “welcome to my shop … let me fix your mop.” During the overture, a woman seated in the row ahead of us had trouble not laughing, since the Bugs Bunny Rabbit of Seville cartoon used the overture as the main body of music.

All in all, a god time was had by my wife and me. I will be checking out the Boheme Opera Company’s schedule next year, and might be willing to see TWO operas as a balance to all of the hockey games that I drag her to.

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