The Barber of Seville

The 2022–2023 Long Center Season opens with Rossini’s The Barber of Seville, a witty tale of bribery, deception, disguise, and of course, true love. With all the essential components of the best comic operas, Barber drops us into a forbidden love story between the rich-nobleman-disguised-as-poor-student Count Almaviva and the vivacious-but-orphaned Rosina, as they try to work out how to escape from the grasping hands of her cantankerous guardian, Dr. Bartolo. To solve the problem, in steps the wiliest of sidekicks, local barber and handyman Figaro, who plots and schemes with the young couple to make sure that true love triumphs in the end, though only after numerous mischievous escapades and near-misses.

With such complex music and action, Barber requires not only exceptionally talented singers but also natural comic actors, and this cast is packed full of such talent. Austin-native, soprano Lauren Snouffer returns for her live production debut as Rosina following her Austin Opera screen debut in the Lauren + Mark Digital Concert Event. She’ll welcome Austin newcomers, baritone Emmett O’Hanlon as the deviously charming Figaro, and Jack Swanson as the love-struck Count Almaviva.

Rossini’s comic masterpiece fizzes with some of the most memorable melodies in opera, including the famous “Figaro, Figaro, Fi—ga—ro” aria which many people first heard being sung by Bugs Bunny. This vibrant production is conducted by Stephanie Rhodes Russell and directed by Gregory Boyle, both making their Austin Opera debuts. In this colorful, comic, and frenetically updated staging of Rossini’s farcical romance, they bring together the extremes of extraordinarily energetic music with hilarious physical comedy for a highly entertaining show which will delight audiences of all ages.