The Barber of Seville (Il Barbiere Di Siviglia)

Synopsis

Il barbiere di Siviglia. A young English aristocrat arrives in Seville to woo the lovely Rosina. However, she is being pursued by an unscrupulous older man, Bartolo and it is only with the ingenious help of the quick thinking barber, Figaro, that the situation is rescued.

Our Review:

20 January 2011

Destined to be remembered as the show that put Joyce DiDonato in a wheelchair, this curious production (revived here by Justin Way) is an uneasy collision of old-school buffa and contemporary chic.

Designer Christian Fenouillat encases the action in a box of tricks and dresses it in confectionery colours. His advent calendar of surprises culminates in a coup de théâtre late in Act 1 that sends the audience out to the interval rooting around for seasickness tablets. Too bad invention flags in Act 2, where joint directors Moshe Leiser and Patrice Caurier uphold the law of diminishing returns as their creative well dries up. There are only so many laughs to be had from a deferential police force or a collapsing set, and Levente Molnár’s joyous Figaro flounders late on when the most interesting thing he gets to do is snuff candles.

What the production most lacks is nuanced humour. Comedy is semaphored via gurning and hand-rubbing, by fake n...

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