Review - Il barbiere di Siviglia (Rossini), Opera Hong Kong, 6 May 2017

Figaro - Steven LaBrie
Rosina - Stephanie Lauricella
Il Conte D’Almaviva - Edoardo Milletti
Dr. Bartolo - Kevin Glavin
Don Basilio - Kevin Thompson
Bertha - Bobbie Zhang
Fiorello - Zhou Jian Kun
Ambrogio - Frankie Fung

Hong Kong Sinfonietta
Hong Kong Dance Company
Opera Hong Kong Chorus

Roberto Gianola (Conductor)

Lorenzo Mariani (Director)

Director Lorenzo Mariani’s light-hearted and action-packed reinterpretation of the much loved opera is doubtless a creative innovation. Drawing on the parallels between flamboyant Rossinian dramatics and the creative elegance of 1930s American musicals, Mariani set the opera against the glitzy background of Hollywood. The stage was filled with bright costumes and objects inspired by musicals and films of that time. Scenes and arias were also interwoven with ceaseless flows of action which served to enliven and emphasise the sung text - especially during Don Basilio’s ‘La Calunnia’, the ‘All'idea di quel metallo’ duet and the ‘Don Basilio – Cosa veggo’ quintet. A particularly memorable scene was towards the end of Act I where Mariani courageously broke the mould of traditional narratives of how Count Almaviva was released: instead of revealing to the officers his identity, Count Almaviva bribed them, and the officers began to distribute the cash amongst themselves surreptitiously.

That said, there were times when Mariani's explicit sense of humour fell flat and turned trite. For example, it was not entirely easy to make out why there were swimsuit figures on the top of a pool slide in Dr Bartolo’s mansion or why Figaro’s shop resembled a phallic structure with a large bulb on top. There were also other times, often after repetition of long sequences and excessive action, when less would actually have been more. Finally, although the production should not be analysed in terms of strict logic, Mariani’s rather abstract reconceptualisation had the tendency of compromising the very physical and chronological details which made the opera comical and exhilarating in the first place. For example, the disappearance of the massive cage in which Rosina was locked after the first scene created a bit of spatial confusion as to where Rosina actually was. Similarly, the highly abstract escape scene at the end of Act II failed to bring out clearly how the ladders were intended to be a means of escape or how they were ultimately removed to frustrate Figaro’s plan. At those places a more conventional and conscious treatment would have probably enhanced the drama and its hilarity. While the creative aspects of this production were generally admirable, they became counterproductive when overdone as the opera gradually devolved into hammy acting and choreographed singing.

The cast was overall a strong one. Figaro was sung by Steven LaBrie with swashbuckling bravado

and an air of effortlessness, but his character had considerably less stage presence than the rest of the cast. ‘Largo al factotum’ was executed perfectly and was accompanied by an amusing choreography. Mezzo-soprano Stephanie Lauricella made a strong impression as the love-struck, baffled, bitter but endearing Rosina, and sang the runs and coloratura with remarkable precision and stunning agility. Though well supported, her lower register is less pleasant and lacks the velvety quality of her upper range. A solid bass with a resonant and gathered tone, Kevin Glavin breathed life into the irascible and scheming Dr Bartolo with compelling presence and believable acting. Yet his voice was slightly drowned out in the presto passages of Dr Bartolo’s signature aria 'A un dottor della mia sorte’ – one which could have merited a more comical treatment in general.

Edoardo Milletti as Count Almaviva was underwhelming. Initially struggling with intonation in his first few solo arias, Milletti carried the legato lyrical lines disappointingly and often brought them to abrupt and unpleasant brakes – a persistent problem in ‘Ecco, ridente in cielo’. Phrasings reflected poor taste and his voice is insufficiently agile to traverse the florid passages with confidence. Constantly brandishing his baton, Kevin Thompson’s Don Basilio was perhaps the oddest of all characters whose repeated antics became more of an annoyance towards the end. Thompson has a massive and extremely resonant voice but unfortunately suffers from a rather bland tone. The orchestra was generally satisfactory but missed the opportunity to bring Rossini’s animated music to life, certainly coming off as lacklustre and vapid in the Overture, only to be marginally rescued by the choreography on stage. It was also very obviously out of sync with the entry of Fiorello in the first scene. Overall, while credit must be given to Mariani's visually exhilarating and dynamic production, the whole Hollywood concept ran the risk of turning the opera into a one-dimensional slapstick drama with over-the-top Americanised humour.

Photo credit: Opera Hong Kong Facebook Page