IL BARBIERE DI SIVIGLIA – ROSSINI [Sung in English]
Presented on Nov 30, Dec 2, 4, 8 at the Gaiety Theatre Dublin as part of the Dublin Grand Opera Society’s Winter Season
Alan Opie – Figaro
Cynthia Buchan – Rosina
Anthony Roden – Almaviva
Peter McBrien – Bartolo
Paul Hudson – Basilio
Frank O’Brien – Fiorello
Rosalind Horsington – Berta
Colman Pearce – Conductor
Tom Hawkes – Producer
Listen to this productiuon here:
Act 1 only
Opera in English? To the purists it was no longer either desirable or fashionable, yet in the winter season of ’81 Tom Hawkes’ production of Rossini’s “The Barber of Seville” (designed by Patrick Murray) was, despite being sung in English, a resounding success; indeed, Hawkes thought that comedies like the “Barber” were often better understood in that language, something he had first noted as a director at the English National Opera. He told me later he still enjoyed coming to Dublin although it had become by now an expensive city. Since the death of Colonel Bill O’Kelly he suspected there was much more internal politics in the society and dealing, for instance, with Donnie Potter was not the same as with the Colonel – he could he tricky. And there was incredible rivalry among the chorus members with all sorts of cliques, but apart from that he found them a splendid bunch of men and women dedicated to the cause of opera and prepared to make endless sacrifices.
(Extracted from “Love and Music: The Glorious History of the Dublin Grand Opera Society” by Gus Smith, 1998)
More information for this production (including any surviving production photographs, press reviews and links to other content) will be added in due course as time allows – check the home page for an updated progress report on uploading.
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