M A R Y S I LV E R W O O D

COLORS IN CONTRAST JULY 5 - 20, 2008

ARTIST RECEPTION SATURDAY, JULY 5, 2-4 PM

The plot is simple, though the characters often complicate it. The
valet Figaro (bass-baritone Luca Pisaroni) must outwit his master, Count
Almaviva (baritone Mariusz Kwiecien), before the Count seduces Figaro’s
intended, Susanna (soprano Elizabeth Watts). Meanwhile, the Count’s
neglected wife (soprano Susanna Phillips) enlists the aid of Figaro and
Susanna in winning her wandering husband back.
Subplots include the romantic plight of the adolescent pageboy, Cherubino
(mezzo-soprano Isabel Leonard), who pines for the Countess and for the
lovely Barbarina (soprano Jamie-Rose Guarrine), and the marital machina-
tions of the housekeeper, Marcellina (mezzo-soprano Michaela Martens),
who has a financial bargain with Figaro that ensures he will either pay her off
or wed her.
What ensues is a lot of hiding in closets and behind chairs, some cross-

SALINAS NO. 1 22" X 16" PASTEL

dressing and people disguising themselves as one another, all because the
characters are letting their hearts and/or loins guide them. As Cherubino
notes, he’s sick with a bewildering emotion that causes both pain and
pleasure. It’s called love, and most of these characters are infected with it.
Director Jonathan Kent encouraged his cast to explore the human emotions
behind every musical moment. The performers played their characters’ wants
and needs for all they were worth, suggesting that the fate of the world
hinged on their actions.
Pisaroni is a confident, defiant Figaro whose musical musings betray
his real feelings: he’s a man afraid of losing Susanna to the more powerful
Count. Watts is a shrewd, smart, and often seductive Susanna, willing to
use her wits, body, and voice to maintain her honor and help right matters 201 GALISTEO STREET 505 989 8795
all around. At her most upbeat, her voice suggests a flock of morning birds SANTA FE NM 87501 JOYCEROBINS.COM
singing a tune about how it’s going to be a really good day.
As the Countess, Phillips got off to an uncertain start during the first act,
but as the opera continued, she regained both her voice and her ground and
gave us a woman full of doubt and desire. When, near the end of the third Santa Fe’s Youth Theatre!
act, she wistfully sang of how life’s promises have disappeared, she spoke to
all who have had love close the door on their hearts. This isn’t a middle-aged
former sexpot who’s lost her allure, nor a game player in someone else’s
Pandemonium
scheme — she’s still vibrant and more than a bit fearful that she will have to
compromise her regal position to coerce her husband back.
PRoductions
Kwiecien’s Count is a lusty rake, sure of himself — and his roaming hands. presents....
But like his wife, he’s vulnerable, and well aware of his servant Figaro’s ability
to belittle him. Leonard was an audience favorite. Her Cherubino is adorable
— terrified, wanting, curious, yet delightfully funny; she displayed the surest
sense of comic timing.
Distinguished conductor Kenneth Montgomery, always a welcome presence
on SFO’s podium, brought out every nuance in Mozart’s inventive score. The
Orchestra and singers were perfectly balanced in his expert hands. Familiar Musical
arias and melodic lines sounded fresh, never hackneyed.
Scenic designer Paul Brown’s raked stage of flowers gave rural scope to the Featuring a live band!
story — characters repeatedly disappeared into the dark wilds of the field
(often because they were being chased). Likewise, the moving house set gave On Stage at the
a true sense of grandeur to the count’s manor. The action suggested those James A. Little Theatre
old Flintstones cartoons in which the characters keep running by the same
windows. 1060 Cerrillos Rd.
Brown’s lush costumes and Duane Schuler’s lighting design worked to
create a colorful landscape where love always resides — Figaro’s characters July 18 and 25 at 7pm
just have to search a little bit to find it.
— Robert Nott July 19, 20, 26, 27 at 2pm

‘The Marriage of Figaro’ continues with performances on Friday, July 4, $10 for adults | $6 for kids
Wednesday, July 9, July 18, and 28 and Aug. 2, 5, 9, 13, 18, and 22. For tickets
and information, call 986-5900 or visit santafeopera.org. Call 982-3327 to reserve tickets
Produced by special arrangement with Pioneer Drama Services
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