Millennium Centre,Cardiff
Vivid portrayals and the theatricality of WNO’s production mean we care approximately these familiar characters propelled into current political instabilityThis final opera of Welsh National Opera’s Forever Figaro series is perhaps the strongest vindication yet of artistic director David Pountney’s policy of themed seasons. Going for a contemporary sequel to Rossini’s The Barber of Seville and Mozart’s The Marriage of Figaro represents tall stakes but, while Count Almaviva loses the remaining family fortune at the casino, and Pountney’s gamble pays off. He himself has written the libretto for composer Elena Langer’s music and also directs. With most of the familiar characters propelled into a recognisably current political instability from which they must flee,the challenge is to produce us care approximately their fate and approximately them as individuals. That we do is thanks to vivid portrayals and the essential theatricality of Pountney’s concept. Continue reading...
Source: theguardian.com