**** (4 stars)
“Showcases the breadth of talent that defines Scottish Opera”
I badly want to give this production five stars – and if I saw it a little later in the run, I’m sure I would. The production is lively and doesn’t muck about with the basic story; the characters are very well cast; the music is of course wonderful; costumes, lighting and set design serve to enhance rather than hinder the story-telling; and the singers range from very good to outstanding.
My reservations come from the huge weight of the four main roles – Count and Countess Almaviva and their servants, Figaro and Susanna. All four singers had really great moments, and were never less than very good – it’s just that maintaining excellence throughout a long a complex opera is hard. Knowing when to relax slightly in order to give your all in a few moments’ time, when not to push but allow the voice to float over the orchestra; husbanding your energy for when you really need it…all takes time to work out and absorb. Not to mention first night nerves! All this will come with time, and very soon in the case of these four very talented singers – which is why I’d really like to see another performance in a few weeks’ time, when it will fulfil its first night promises and dazzle everyone who comes to see it.
The basic plot is simple – Figaro wants to marry Susanna; the Count wants to bed her before her wedding night; the Countess struggles with the misery of having been wooed and won then rejected by her husband. Complications arise in the form of Cherubino, a young lad who’s besotted with every woman in sight; Marcellina, who also wants to marry Figaro; Dr Bartolo who wants revenge on Figaro for preventing him from marrying his wealthy ward, Rosina [now the Countess]; Don Basilio simply delights in scandal and intrigue; Barbarina wants Cherubino; and her father Antonio simply wants to stop people jumping out of windows and crushing his geraniums. Plots, disguises, locked closets, a military commission, a foundling reunited with his parents, and a chorus of servants who simply want to get on with the promised party all add to the mayhem.
Thomas Allen’s production is wonderful in that it makes the story as easy to follow as it might be while not forcing it into some strange Concept that makes one feel the producer hasn’t actually read the script. I must confess I wondered about Susanna’s praising the friendly darkness ofthe night when there was a giant harvest moon in the sky, and whether the cornfield which provided the helpful stooks of corn actually grew right up to the walls of the Almaviva home – but these are design rather than production quibbles. Costumes are appropriate to the period and quietly underline the difference in social standing between master and servant. Lighting, as it should, illuminates the plot, and good choreography also helped us see what was going on.
And, of course, there’s Mozart, who with librettist da Ponte created one of the most beautifully balanced and plotted of all operas. Amanda Holden’s translation is superb, especially in the plot-advancing recitatives and, while I might wish that the singers didn’t need to have their words up in the supertitles, it meant that everyone present was able to understand, enjoy, and be completely involved in what was going on on stage. I wonder how many ‘first timers’ were present? Certainly there was a huge laugh when Marcellina is revealed to be Figaro’s mother!
Scottish Opera’s orchestra were, as ever, brilliant, and conducted for this run by Dane Lam. As for the singers – well! It’s a cast which needs a vast range of superlatives to describe them all. Emerging Artist Edward Jowle has already shown his quality in a number of smaller roles with Scottish Opera, while Ava Dodd as his Susanna was making her Scottish Opera début and making me keen to see her again very soon. Ian Rucker, another debutant, was an excellent Count, with just the occasional American ‘a’ colouring his delivery: his Countess, Alexandra Lowe, stood up to him spiritedly, generous with her forgiveness after all his hypocritical blustering. I just wish I could believe his repentance would last…
Simone McIntosh was captivating as Cherubino – the perfectly awkward, emotionally overflowing teenager who can’t control his reactions and is desperate to gain experience with any woman who’ll allow this. Jeni Bern was a wonderfully warm and engaging Marcellina, rather than the bitter, ageing spinster so often seen on stage – I’m just really sad she didn’t get her pro-women aria which is a wonderful counterfoil to Figaro’s bitter condemnation of them which immediately follows in the score. Edward Hawkins was a delight as Dr Bartolo – tall, elegant, wryly witty rather than the blustering old fool one so often sees – while Scottish Opera Emerging Artist, tenor Luva Maranti, made the most of Basilio’s all-too-brief contributions. I really look forward to hearing his gorgeous voice in a more prominent role very soon.
The whole production showcased the breadth of talent that defines Scottish Opera’s productions. The audience showed their appreciation with applause for many of the arias and ensembles and were loudly vociferous in their congratulations at the final curtain. Another thoroughly enjoyable evening, an entertainment which will be brought to a theatre near you in the coming weeks. Don’t miss it!
And oh my – next year’s programme is mouth-wateringly delectable! Puccini’s Turandot, Beethoven’s Fidelio and my all-time favourite Handel – Alcina – are the main attractions, but there’s more… get hold of a copy of The next era which outlines the programme for 2026/7 and start clearing dates in your diary!!
Mozart’s The Marriage of Figaro, Scottish Opera, Theatre Royal, Glasgow runs until Saturday 23rd May for more information and tickets go to: Scottish Opera – The Marriage of Figaro Tickets | Theatre Royal Glasgow in Glasgow | ATG Tickets
The Production will also perform at:
The Festival Theatre Edinburgh, Friday 29th May to Saturday 6th June for more info go to: The Marriage of Figaro – Capital Theatres
His Majesty’s Theatre Aberdeen Thursday 11th June to Saturday 13th June for more information go to: The Marriage of Figaro | Aberdeen Performing Arts
Eden Court Theatre, Inverness Thursday 18th June to Saturday 20th June for more info go to: The Marriage of Figaro | Eden Court
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