Merola Opera Program's Barber of Seville (Thursday)

* Notes *
The Merola Opera Program's Il barbiere di Siviglia (Act II, Scene 11 with Jonathan Michie, Suzanne Rigden, and Heath Huberg pictured left; photograph by Kristen Loken) opened last night at Herbst Theatre in San Francisco. Mark Morash held the orchestra together without rushing terribly. The cast was robust, with many pretty voices and great physicality. The chorus was incredibly loud, despite the small number of singers. Deborah Nansteel sang Berta's one aria, "Il vecchiotto cerca moglie," very beautifully. Adam Lau was quite funny as Don Basilio, his low notes projected well, without being gravelly. Philippe Sly convincingly transformed himself into the incredibly silly, old man that is Dr. Bartolo. His voice is lovely, and his "A un dottor dell mia sorte" was memorable.

Jonathan Michie had excellent comic timing as Figaro, and sang with bright warmth. Heath Huberg (Almaviva) was dashing, though at times slightly strained, but pleasantly light. Suzanne Rigden (Rosina) has a dizzying ability to sing high notes, her coloratura technique is impressive.

Eric Flatmo's set involved a great many of tinsel garlands and furniture placed on end. This made for simple scene changes. The lighting, designed by Jax Messenger, was at times harsh against the already very shiny surfaces. Roy Rallo's direction was consistent, his ideas were carried all the way through the production and were humorous. I enjoyed his deliberate use of anachronism. The costumes, from Kristi Johnson, appeared period, except for Rosina's outfit, which consisted of a long bubble skirt, a high-waisted robe with many fastenings, and boots.

* Tattling *
The man behind me in K 4 spoke at full volume for much of Act I, during Basilio's only aria and Bartolo's first one. There was especially confusion about identifying each character at the beginning. There was some electronic noise that seemed to be associated with the production, perhaps associated with cuing.