The Marriage of Figaro

The libretto, based on the comedy by French playwright Pierre-Augustin Caron de Beaumarchais, is a brilliant farce and a witty satire dealing with explosive social themes. The play was banned by Louis XVI and later by Joseph II, the new Holy Roman Emperor. Nevertheless, the censors did not prohibit its adaptation into a libretto, allowing Mozart and Lorenzo Da Ponte to use it as the basis for their opera.

The play transforms Count Almaviva from the romantic hero of The Barber of Seville into an unscrupulous antagonist and is, more broadly, highly critical of aristocratic corruption, which it contrasts with the virtue of the lower classes.

Mozart and Lorenzo Da Ponte soften the revolutionary force of the original plot, but in return delve even more deeply into the souls of the characters, giving the relationships between men and women a significance that extends far beyond the original work.

The production is classical in style, with continuous stage action and scenes unfolding within scenes. Two principal storylines intersect: Count Almaviva’s attempt to make Susanna, the fiancée of his valet Figaro, his mistress, and Countess Rosina’s attempt to win back the love of her unfaithful husband.

The once young and romantic couple, Rosina and Count Almaviva, are now settled at their estate near Seville, but their marriage is in crisis.

Count Almaviva has become an aggressive and manipulative womaniser, while Rosina, now the Countess, has grown desperate and distressed by the state of their relationship.

Figaro is now employed as Count Almaviva’s personal valet, but the Count is actively pursuing Figaro’s fiancée, Susanna. He repeatedly delays their wedding, finding new ways to prevent the marriage from taking place — even on the very day it is scheduled.

Figaro, Susanna, and the Countess devise a plan to expose the Count and his womanising ways, hoping to shame him into changing his behaviour.

The Count, however, continues trying to prevent the marriage by forcing Figaro to marry an older woman at court, Marcellina — who ultimately turns out to be his mother.

Figaro, Susanna, and the Countess eventually succeed in their scheme, and the Count asks his wife for forgiveness.