Le Nozze di Figaro: Mozart Meets "Downton Abbey"?

This past Saturday, I spent the evening with my parents at the Metropolitan Opera house, where we saw the Met's new and modern production of Mozart's classic comedy: "Le Nozze di Figaro" (The Marriage of Figaro).

The beautiful Metropolitan Opera House

The masses congregating around the central fountain

After having an early dinner, we slowly strolled towards the opera house. Once we arrived at Lincoln Center, my parents and I people watched for a bit, and took pictures in front of the opera house. It was a gorgeous summer-like evening, so my dad and I decided to indulge a bit with some pre-opera chocolate gelato! The gelato was delicious and really hit the spot!

For those who may not be familiar with the story of "Le Nozze di Figaro," here is a plot summary, courtesy Wikipedia: "The Marriage of Figaro" continues the plot of "The Barber of Seville," several years later, and recounts a single "day of madness" in the palace of Court Almaviva near Sevilla, Spain. Rosina is now the Countess. Dr. Bartolo is seeking revenge against Figaro for thwarting his plans to marry Rosina himself. Count Almaviva has degenerated from the romantic youth of "The Barber of Seville" into a scheming, bullying, skirt-chasing baritone. Having gratefully given Figaro a job as head of his servant-staff, he is not persistently trying to obtain the favor of Figaro's bride-to-be, Susanna. He keeps finding excuses to delay the civil part of the wedding of his two servants, which is arranged for this very day. Figaro, Susanna, and the Countess conspire to embarrass the Count and expose his scheming. He responds by trying to compel Figaro legally to marry a woman old enough to be his mother, but it turns out at the last minute that she really is his mother! Through Figaro and Susanna's clever manipulations, the Count's love for his Countess is finally restored."  This is a very long opera, filled with many plot twists. (Side note: here is a blog post I wrote two years ago when I saw "The Barber of Seville").

This retelling of Mozart's classic and beloved comedy was set in Seville, but in the 1930s. All of the characters really did look at they stepped out of "Dowton Abbey!" I know that I tend to not enjoy modern updates, but this somehow worked. The decor, the costumes, and the props --- all made to look circa 1930 --- didn't detract from the story, if anything, I think it enhanced the story.

Traditional "period" staging of "Le Nozze di Figaro"

The Met's new modern 1930s staging of "Le Nozze di Figaro"

The set was very interesting, in my opinion. It reminded me of a Highclere Castle, but at the same time, the carved design was so intricate and almost modern. I also liked the fact that this production of "Le Nozze di Figaro" made use of a rotating set. The main central area would turn, occasionally revealing a dining room, Figaro's room, the garden, and the Countess's room. Very cleverly executed. I particularly liked when the stage would rotate and the cast would move with the stage, naturally --- I felt like I was really watching different areas of a grand manor house or castle at work.

The main set

A bit of a panorama shot of the Opera House and stage, from our seats

The maids cleaning up  the Countess's bedroom

I don't claim to be an authority or expert on opera. In fact, I'm far from that. I enjoy opera, but I am by no means an expert --- I leave that title to my mother. People are often surprised when I tell them I enjoy opera. In fact, I think my parents are a bit surprised, since I wasn't always like this. My parents, particularly my mother, are opera lovers and when I was little (as early as elementary school), my parents occasionally took me to the opera. As a child, I did not really appreciate my mother's attempt to introduce me to such a posh cultural, but I was a dutiful and well behaved child and sat through many opera. (My father's bribe of an intermission brownie also helped to fuel my cooperation). At a young age, I was fortunate enough to see famous singers including Placido Domingo, Deborah Voigt, and of course, Luciano Pavarotti! I've also seen famed conductor James Levine several times. 

Anyway, although I have literally grown up with opera, like I said, I'm no expert. I thought the singing in the Met's 2014 production of "Le Nozze di Figaro" was quite good, but my mother felt otherwise. She seemed to feel that the singing was not particularly impressive or did not match her image of the character. I can't really comment. In my mind, no one was off key, so I was happy. My mother did enjoy Peter Mattei's performance as the Count, but then again, she is a Peter Mattei fan. (Fun fact: after consulting Wikipedia, I learned that Mattei is famous for his baritone roles in Mozart operas!) 

Figaro (Ildar Abdrazakov) and Susanna (Marlis Petersen)

Susanna (Marlis Petersen) flirting with Count Almaviva (Peter Mattei), whilst the Countess (Amanda Majeski) watches from behind the door 

Overall, I'd say that this modern update of Mozart's "Le Nozze di Figaro" was cleverly done. The opera was quite funny and the singing (in my opinion) was enjoyable. My issue with this production is that it was soooo long. Granted, that's more an issue with Mozart than the creative team of the Met, but yeah, Mozart's opera's tend to be mega long. This opera was 3 hours and 45 min! Sure, most opera's are quite long, but there is something about Mozart, where his scenes just drag on because the songs are very repetitive. Whereas in real life, if someone asked you a "yes or no" question, it would take one second to respond. In Mozart's world, it takes about five minutes! Length aside, I enjoyed this modern "Downton Abbey"-esque update of "Le Nozze di Figaro." 

NOTE: I do not own the production pictures. I found those on google.