Category: Reviews

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.

When I first entered the Opera house, I did not know what to expect. This was my first time at an opera. If you were to ask the person sitting next to me, she would probably tell you I was riveted, my eyes glued to the stage. Even before the curtains had opened, I fell in love. While listening to the overture, I recognized it as a melody I heard, and loved, many times before. The music is not to heavy, it is catchy and stays in you head after it is over. Then the curtains opened and my eyes were presented with the most beautiful sets I had laid eyes on, act after act. What especially captured your attention was how the light progressed through the acts, from warm sunlight shinning through the large windows, to the cold moonlight of the last act. The lighting was so realistic and beautiful, I had a hard time believing it was coming from man made lights rather than a magical sun. The lighting gave life to the set and the actors’ faces. the costumes were equally realistic and beautiful, transporting us, effectively, back to the time when women wore large gowns and corsets.  The singing was beautiful, especially the arias. What I did dislike was the repetition of the same line over and over again, it made me want to fast forward through the drawn out conversations. The opera was hard to sit through for three hours, and I do know that there are operas longer than this one. The plot was a bit too much like a soap opera, with so many people misunderstanding and trying to get back at each other. At times the plot seemed to rushed and unrealistic, like at the end, when all of a sudden everyone was happy and all was forgiven in a matter of seconds. The acting was good too and it certainly added to the singing and the whole show.  Overall I have more praise than critique for this opera and it was an experience that made me want to come back for another performance.

Le nozze di Figaro is a funny and captivating storyline, transformed seamlessly and beautifully into poetic prose, and performed effusively and impressively at the Metropolitan Opera.

The storyline is not a cliche romance or tragedy, as many (I) would expect coming into an opera written so long ago. Instead, there are many comical events, many of which include miscues and ironic discoveries, such as those between the Count and Cherubino, who was masterful at playing a jester of sorts, drawing out many of the audiences laughs while not being too “over-the-top”.

The set was brilliant. While being clean and classical, it did not fail to engage the viewer with its vibrance. Like many other features of the performance, it was appealing and engaging, but most importantly served its purpose in complementing and magnifying the characters and their situations. With sets often cluttered with people hiding and running about, simplicity was absolutely a well thought out route.

The ending though, is a poor one. The Count spends over 3 hours betraying the Countess, and then, as if with the flick of a switch, the audience is expected to believe he has fallen back in love with the Count. Though playing up the satirical aspect of the opera, it is none the less too much of letdown for the casual viewer.

The tone is one of melancholy and lightheartedness, save for a few select moments magnifying a few of the characters emotion. The most notable of which takes place in Act 3, in which the Countess wonders what happened to the love between her and the Count and laments at its loss. Her voice is low and her movements work in complete synchronization with her singing, as she slowly drops to the floor, taking the viewer down with her in sympathy, as her voice drips with sorrow. Indeed the performances of the Countess and Rosanna were spectacular, both of whom playing their emotions with an understated tastefulness that was truly convincing.

The ending though, is a poor one. The Count spends over 3 hours betraying the Countess, and then, as if with the flick of a switch, the audience is expected to believe he has fallen back in love with the Count. Though playing up the satirical aspect of the opera, it is none the less too much of letdown for the casual viewer.

Nonetheless, I would certainly recommend Figaro to anybody, both experienced opera-goers and the not, as its greatest strength is its ability to entertain, a quality brought out by its comical and lighthearted nature.