Il barbiere di Siviglia

This November was not normal, the temparature stayed around 15 to 18 degrees and there was no sign of snowing whatsoever. The constant rain and warm weather really made me uneasy and I decided to go to see The Barber of Seville to smooth my feeling. Although I have booked a ticket for next March for this performance, but I really wish to see it now. It has became a critically acclaimed new production of Met for this season, which has not been performed for 25 years. Plus, it is refered to as a Divine Comedy, which I need most at this tricky point of my life. According to Wikipedia: "The Barber of Seville (Il barbiere di Siviglia) is a comic opera in two acts by Gioacchino Rossini with a libretto (based on Beaumarchais's comedy Le Barbier de Séville) by Cesare Sterbini. This opera follows the first of the plays from the Figaro trilogy, by French playwright Pierre Augustin Caron de Beaumarchais. The original Beaumarchais version was first performed in 1775, in Paris at the Comédie Française at the Tuileries Palace." This season at Met "the greatest Rossini tenor of our time, Juan Diego Flórez, sings the role of Count Almaviva in The Met’s first new Barbiere in 25 years. Diana Damrau and Joyce DiDonato share the role of Rosina, Peter Mattei is Figaro, Samuel Ramey is Don Basilio and John Del Carlo sings the role of the hapless Dr. Bartolo. Directed by Bartlett Sher and designed by Michael Yeargan (both of the Tony Award®-winning The Light in the Piazza), this is a Barbiere that is light on its feet, with mobile sets that allow the comic action to swirl from stage to audience and back again. Maurizio Benini conducts." The amazing thing about this opera is that you know it is a comic, but it makes you laugh without any burden. Dr. Bartolo is certainly the hopeless laughstock of the story, however, his simple and stupic plots makes him even loveable. Peter Mattei's Figaro is very impressive, in terms of vocal part and his performance. I even think he could make a great Méphistophélès in Faust, even though he is a baritone, not a bass. The show-off of the play is Juan Diego Flórez, the Rossini tenor of our time. Flórez is a native of Peru and a son of folk musician. As for the title role he has played for 13 years, he commented: “You have to sing it fast!” says Juan Diego Flórez of Rossini’s quicksilver coloratura. “Otherwise, it’s not exciting." He points out that it’s not Rossini’s tricky fireworks that most appeal to him but rather the vocal elegance that underlies the crowd-pleasing display. “I like the refinement of it, the musicality of it,” he explains of Rossini’s vocal lines. “For me, Bach and Haydn and Mozart and Rossini are all part of the same style. The melody, the line—that’s very important for me.” 《塞韦利亚的理发师》总是让我联想到达里奥.福的《一个无政府主义者的意外死亡》。在《意外死亡》里，一切都是赤裸裸的，警察和被关押的无政府主义者的地位和关系一目了然。《塞》表面上是一出喜剧和爱情故事，但是其中充满了权力和反抗，包括男性和女性的冲突（Dr. Bartolo 和罗西娜），不同阶层之间的冲突（费加罗和Dr. Bartolo ），年轻和年老者的冲突 （Count Almaviva 和Dr. Bartolo ）。但是这些权力关系潜藏在诙谐的表层之下，只有到了山穷水尽，故事无法继续的时候，Rossini 才不得不把个人的身份挑明，使冲突得到解决。故事的结果固然是皆大欢喜，其实也不过是拥有权力者的胜利。罗西那到底爱的是Count Almaviva 还是穷光蛋Lindoro，恐怕连她自己也不清楚。 哎，难得糊涂吧！