Il barbiere di Siviglia

The wealthy Count Almaviva has won the heart of the beautiful Rosina under the pseudonym 'Lindoro'. But Rosina’s jealous guardian Dr Bartolo wishes to marry his ward himself and so tries to keep her suitors away. Fortunately, 'Lindoro' is helped by the cunning barber Figaro, who – more or less ingeniously – weaves a web of entanglements and masquerades. The 23-year-old Rossini composed 'Il barbiere di Siviglia' in just three weeks. Witty, fiery and vibrant, it is a masterpiece of Italian opera buffa, in which, as is so often the case, the old man in disguise hoodwinks everyone. Rossini was inspired by the 1772 play 'La Précaution inutile ou le Barbier de Séville' by the French poet, secret agent and arms smuggler Pierre-Augustin Caron de Beaumarchais, which tells the backstory of Mozart’s 'Le nozze di Figaro'. Rossini’s humorously drawn characters, the brilliant solo parts, rousing melodies and fast-paced ensembles fully unfold in Ruth Berghaus’s timeless production from 1968 (with young Achim Freyer’s innovatively simple stage design). Bursting with life and situation comedy, it has lost nothing of its youthful freshness and vitality after over 350 performances.