Nozze di Figaro Review

Being my first trip to the opera, I was a bit nervous and did not know what to expect. Stereotypes of operas being long, boring events only wealthy people attended coursed through my mind. Arriving at the Metropolitan Opera house I was intimidated by its sophisticated air. Sitting quietly, waiting for the performance to begin, I had butterflies in my stomach. Throughout the course of the opera, I fell in love with the atmoshere.

Immediately upon the rise of the curtain, I was taken aback by the breathtaking sets. Never in my limited experiences of high school productions and Broadway shows had I seen such beautiful work on the scenery. The sheer amount of detail which went into making the sets appear real was staggering to me. One of the more impressive aspects was the control of light; I was amazed that the stage crews could create the effect of light coming through the windows, and then change the light according to the time of day. Also, the tilt of the revolving stage drew me in, as I could see the entire room, making me feel as if I was there. The tilt also made me commend the talent of the actors, as I imagine walking and dancing on a tilted floor would be difficult. Before each act began, I was eager to see the next part of the set. Another part of the spectacle of the performance that I thoroughly enjoyed was the costumes. Each character’s costume looked as if it had come straight out of a museum, and I commend the meticulous work of whoever tailored them.

The opera itself was a joy to experience. I thought the plot shifts and twists were incredibly well done and humorous; Nozze di Figaro has become my new favorite classic comedy. Never having experienced live opera singing, I quickly realized that listening in person is starkly different from hearing a clip on the radio. The actor’s voices filled the entire opera house and evoked so many different emotions in me, depending on the mood of the song. I could not detect a single flaw while they were singing, whether that be attributed to my lack of musical training, or the actor’s perfection. My favorite parts were when multiple actor’s sang in unison, because I was so impressed by their synchronization. My only complaint throughout the whole show was not with the performance itself, but with the length of the intermissions. I wish that they had been shortened just a bit, as I felt the wait was too long.