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The Marriage of Figaro
 | Ensemble
Photo: Matthew Staver
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Revolution is in the air. The American colonies have declared their independence from the British Empire, and in three years, the French would overthrow their monarchy. Mozart was caught up in the spirit of all this, but when he began his quest to turn The Marriage of Figaro—a successful stage comedy, by Pierre Beaumarchais, which had been banned in Vienna—into an opera, it was clear that his librettist, Lorenzo Da Ponte, would need to make some changes before Emperor Joseph II would approve it.
 | Ryan Kuster as Figaro
and Maureen McKay as Susanna
Photo: Matthew Staver
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Da Ponte removed the play's political criticism of the hereditary nobility, and in its place were complaints about unfaithful wives. Fortunately, as with Shake-speare's five semi-biographical plays where males suspect unfaithfulness on the part of their wives and are always proven wrong, so Mozart's heroines prove to be beyond reproach, and the Count and Figaro (to a degree) get their comeuppance. The opera was an immediate success, and is still one of the top ten operas performed globally.
 | Simone Alberghini as Count Almaviva
Photo: Matthew Staver
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For those unfamiliar with the operatic canon, the style is an opera buffa (comic opera), which rivals any of the best stage comedies for humor and mayhem. In this case, we're showered with mistaken identities, timely entrances, compromising circumstances, characters that unwittingly caricaturize themselves, and, of course, world-class vocals.
 | Ellie Dehn as Countess Almaviva
and Maureen McKay Susanna
Photo: Matthew Staver
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In Opera Colorado's stellar production that concluded on Sunday, May 12th, the title role was performed by Ryan Custer, whose rich baritone, in concert Maureen McKay's soaring soprano, as his beloved Susanna, make for a marvelous pairing, as they establish in the first scene, singing about their upcoming wedding.
 | Margaret Gawrysisk as Marcellina
and Stefano de Peppo as Dr. Bartolo
Photo: Matthew Staver
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But before the nuptials can transpire, a variety of obstacles are thrown in their way, including Count Almaviva's (Simone Alberghini) designs on Susanna, a previous marriage contract for Figaro, plus the Count's growing agitation over a number of events, such as the young Cherubino's (Adriana Zabala) pubescent-fueled dalliances with every attractive female on the premises. Alberghini's strong baritone conveys the power and entitlement of the Count, who only recently set aside the rights of local lord to carnel relations with his female subjects. Zabala's mezzo is sweet as an adolescent male on the verge of physiological change.
 | Ellie Dehn as Countess Almaviva
and Adrianna Zabala as Cherubino
Photo: Matthew Staver
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However cute and endearing Cherubino's advances may be to Countess Almaviva (Ellie Dehn) and Susanna (McKay), and however compromised they may be by his untimely presence (when the Count, Figaro, or the gardener appear), the women have greater quandaries on their hands: to tame the Count's jealousy and sexual aggressiveness, and to help Figaro clear the way for the marriage. Dehn's lustrous soprano captures the Countess' sadness over her husband's officious and suspicious nature, while still holding hope for a change.
Despite all the implicit and incisive social criticism that remains in the libretto, the classical farcical nature of the story leads to a fun and instructive conclusion.
Ari Pelto and the 48-piece Opera Colorado Orchestra provide an inspired rendition of Mozart's brilliant work.
Opera Colorado's four performances of Mozart's The Marriage of Figaro closed on May 12th.
Bob Bows
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