After originally outraging the aristocracy, due to its subject matter of servants outwitting their masters, The Marriage of Figaro went on to survive its controversies, becoming one of the best operas ever written. In fact, it came in number 1 out of 20 operas when the BBC News Magazine in 2017 asked 172 opera singers to vote on the best.
It’s a whirlwind of love, desire, and witty schemes unfolded against the backdrop of 18th-century Spain. In it, the clever valet Figaro is set to marry Susanna, but their plans are thwarted by the lustful Count Almaviva, who desires her. Figaro, Susanna, and the Countess Rosina – Almaviva’s distraught wife – navigate a web of disguises and misunderstandings in a single day of madness to outsmart the Count. The characters seek to expose the Count’s infidelity and celebrate love’s triumph over social hierarchy.
This timeless four-act opera masterpiece by Mozart is a fitting grand finale for Pacific Opera’s 2023-24 season, set to run April 3, 5, 7 and 9 at the Royal Theatre.
The opera will be Pacific Opera’s third consecutive closer where the Italian libretto (opera text) is written by Lorenzo Da Ponte and the music by Mozart. They also wrote Don Giovanni and Così fan tutte, the operas that concluded Pacific Opera’s 2021-22 and 2022-23 seasons respectively. Vernon said ending this season with The Marriage of Figaro feels “almost inevitable.”
“Mozart has figured very prominently in our repertoire since the beginning. The size of our house and the space for the orchestra are ideal for ‘authentic’ presentation - no reductions necessary. And the audience has taken great delight in revisiting these irresistible masterpieces,” Vernon told Monday Mag.
Those who have seen The Barber of Seville have met the Count and Countess from The Marriage of Figaro before in their earlier life. “Here, in Figaro, in their now-settled noble household, whose peace is threatened by a philandering husband, Mozart gives us as charming a version of upstairs/downstairs as anyone could wish–a ‘perfect’ comedy, glittering with musical invention,” Vernon said.
The timely melodies, passionate outbursts, and lively, intricate ensemble scenes have hailed it a must-see, with the Pacific Opera in Victoria promising to showcase the enduring appeal of this operatic gem.
And what more can one want from an opera than passionate encounters, comical twists and a pursuit of social equality?
See The Marriage of Figaro on April 3, 5, 7, and 9 at the Royal Theatre. More at pacificopera.ca.
