After several Opera Australia productions where the technology has dominated the artists, it was a great relief to see Mozart’s The Marriage of Figaro with all technology hidden. The visuals in this production will take your breath away from the period costumes to elegant scenery and exquisite lighting. It’s the ultimate high class production design and perfect backdrop to some of the most loved music in the classical repertoire.
Jenny Tiramani’s costumes and sets showcase her marvellous knowledge after years of working with London’s Globe Theatre. The fabrics looked authentic with subtle colour mixes which are just stunning. The Marriage of Figaro storyline features a stark contrast between nobility and the servants of the house. Tiramani clothed the servants in variations of warm blues, white and cream while the nobility wore black, red and rich gold satins with lace and split sleeves. It was unusual to see the cast in 17th Century clothes (think 3 Musketeers) rather than the 18th Century clothes of the time of Mozart but worked perfectly. Makeup was kept very basic with natural colours for all the cast and the opening scene featuring lighting strongly directed from low to the ground as if the sun was just rising on an extraordinary day.
Director Sir David McVicar showed his expertise reading between the lines of the libretto. There were plenty of comic moments which kept the audience laughing, minor character play and ample opportunity to see how the nobility ruled in every way they wished over the poor servants. Peppered throughout the story were little crowds of servants listening in on the conversation, even falling into the room if the doors were suddenly opened. The Opera Australia chorus and extras played this perfectly, each individual with their own unique twist.
Our first leading lady Susanna was beautifully played by a young Australian soprano Stacey Alleaume with accurate singing and lovely development of her comic character. With just a few scant years of professional experience, she is making big progress in the opera world and we look forward to seeing her in more productions. Russian soprano Ekaterina Sadovnikova played the Countess. With a bit of a tentative start, the confidence grew and she won the crowd over with the very popular aria ‘Dove Sono’. Two more foreigners took the leading men’s roles with baritone Paolo Bordogna as a lively, wonderfully comic Figaro and Ukraine baritone Andrei Bondarenko as the Count. Supporting roles were played by our more experienced Aussies Domenica Matthews and Richard Anderson offering plenty more laughs with just the right amount of comedy.
Audience applause at the curtain clearly defined the most outstanding performance as Australian mezzo Anna Dowsley as Cherubino. It’s a great star vehicle role anyway but Dowsley showcased her skills with strong singing, comic timing and easily straddled the acting subtleties of a woman performer playing a gawky, pubescent teenage boy dressed by the servants as a girl to keep him out of trouble. To be able to pull this off while giving away no hints of the feminine performer is a mighty challenge and the audience fully appreciated her artistry.
The orchestra offered a marvellous foundation for the performers directed by French conductor Guillaume Tourniaire. The over all team effort felt generous and united in a constancy of quality and good taste. Highly recommended.
The season runs till 2 November 2019 at the Joan Sutherland Theatre, Sydney Opera House.
Opera Australia website: https://opera.org.au/
Featured image : Paolo Bordogna as Figaro, Anna Dowlsey as Cherubino, and Stacey Alleaume as Susannah in Opera Australia’s 2019 production of The Marriage of Figaro at the Sydney Opera House. Pic by Prudence Upton
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