A Comedy of Reconciliation

It’s easy to take Le Nozze di Figaro for granted. Not only is it performed so often that one need never go longer than a year without seeing it, but it is also a resilient work, difficult for all but the most determined director to mess up completely. But while even an average production is sure to contain a handful of delightful moments, a great production – and the Staatsoper’s new Figaro is as close to greatness as one might hope to hope to see in the present day – reminds us just how much humanity, in its most gloriously messy form, Mozart and Da Ponte managed to fit into the tidy package of an opera buffa. 

It would be possible to attribute the success of the new Staatsoper production to the illuminating musical direction of Gustavo Dudamel – for whom the Staatskapelle played with exquisite poise – or to the uniformly excellent cast…