Le nozze di Figaro

Just got back from the Royal Opera having seen the first night of Le nozze di Figaro.

I could not quite figure out what Pappano was doing with Mozart's score. The tempi were quite elastic. For instance, the Countess' aria at the beginning of Act II was beautifully sung by Dorothea Röschmann though there were quite a few recognisable rubati. The stage direction was superb (by David McVicar) and the excitement that the cast brought to the production more than compensated for the occasionally wayward tuning.

Ervin Schrott as Figaro was very good - he had flair and energy.

I think Pappano was taking the entire cast with him - given the elastic tempi - there were many places that could have taken a bad turn yet I could feel everyone on / off stage was giving their best.

Verdict: Go see it.

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