The Barber of Seville, Opera San Jose, Feb. 24 2011

We returned four days later to see the other cast:

Figaro: Adam Meza
Almaviva: Chester Pidduck
Rosina: Cathleen Candia
Dr. Bartolo: Torlef Borsting
Don Basilio: Paul Murray
Fiorello: Anders Froehlich
Berta: Kindra Scharich

Thanks to attending Larry Hancock’s pre-performance lecture, I learned that director Jose Maria Condemi comes from a Latin American tradition that enjoys using inside jokes; specifically, the carrots in the Act 1 finale are an oblique reference to The Rabbit of Seville, and the apple on Ambrogio’s head a more obvious reference to Rossini’s final opera, William Tell. During the Largo al factotum, a young man and woman pantomimed the essence of the plot of The Elixir of Love, with Figaro playing the role of Dr. Dulcamara by offering the potion/wine to the man.

Adam Meza cut a very fine figure as Figaro, with the commanding stage presence that the role demands. He sang well, but without the richness of tone that Karagiozov produced in the other cast. If we had a Figaro with Kragiozov’s voice and Meza’s acting, we’d really have something.

Paul Murray, who had really impressed me as Alidoro in La Cenerentola, was our Don Basilio. I continue to be impressed, and hope to hear more from him in the future.

Torlef Borsting is benefiting from the training that is part of being an Opera San Jose resident artist. His A un dottor della mia sorte exceeded my expectations.

Chester Pidduck’s Almaviva was disappointing. It’s not a large voice, and he had a certain amount of trouble negotiating the florid passages in Ecco ridente, though he was more effective in the second act. Cathleen Candia sang a satisfying Rosina. Ming Luke, new to the podium in my experience, led a performance that sparkled just a bit more than Bryan Nies’s. Overall, a beta.