This year, WNO are touring three related operas, The Barber of Seville, The Marriage of Figaro and the Figaro gets a Divorce (Elena Langer). These are new productions and so, although I was unable to get to all three I was keen to see how The Marriage of Figaro fared in WNO's capable hands.
I was not disappointed. This is probably the first time I have grinned pretty well all through an opera, and been surrounded by groups who laughed out loud on many occasions. Jeremy Sams' translation, which he admits he is still tinkering with, is fresh and funny and makes the convoluted plot(s) easy to follow and the characters easy to believe and engage with. Costuming is glorious and traditional without being stuffy and the set is simple and amazingly very effective. Overall, the production was very slick and even the garden scene, which is some productions seems to drag interminably, was kept lively and quick-paced. This is a fun-filled, clean, open production presented without fuss that lets the music and the story shine through and which allows the audience to fully appreciate and enjoy Mozart's comic masterpiece.
David Stout (Figaro) and Anna Devin (Susanna) were superb and I also particularly enjoyed Susan Bickley's Marcellina but this is the WNO at the top of their game doing what they do best and the entire cast and ensemble were a delight to hear and to watch. A big "thank you" must go to the excellent WNO Orchestra under Timothy Burke who were, as always, spot on in pace, volume and sound.
On the negative side; the scene change between acts 1 and 2 takes too long (though I'm glad we're allowed to watch it), I have no idea what the "poltergeist moment" with the exploding iron was all about and the "play within a play" premise fails to catch (and adds nothing) as it only appears in the pre-show and one or two knowing moments between the singers and the orchestra (which I accept were veryy funny). But these are not significant issues in the overall 3.25 hours of the show and didn't unduly hinder the flow and pace of the piece.
It was great to see a lot of younger people in the audience, this is an easily accessible "proper opera" in a beautifully presented production.
