Kosky's strongly cast Figaro brings down the house in Vienna

Ying Fang (Susanna) and Peter Kellner (Figaro)

Hanna-Elisabeth Müller (Contessa Almaviva)

Hanna-Elisabeth Müller (Contessa) and Andrè Schuen (Conte Almaviva)

Peter Kellner (Figaro) and Patricia Nolz (Cherubino)

Hanna-Elisabeth Müller (Contessa) and Andrè Schuen (Conte Almaviva)

By Chanda VanderHart, 14 March 2023

Loading, please wait...

See full listing

“platform shoes, velvet suits with winged collars, dresses so shiny you shouldn’t stand near a fire”

Reviewed at Wiener Staatsoper, Vienna on 13 March 2023

Mozart, Le nozze di Figaro (The Marriage of Figaro)

Vienna State Opera

Philippe Jordan, Conductor

Barrie Kosky, Director

Rufus Didwiszus, Set Designer

Victoria Behr, Costume Designer

Franck Evin, Lighting Designer

Orchestra of the Vienna State Opera

Concert Association Vienna State Opera Chorus

Jan Freese, Bühnenbildassistenz

Andrè Schuen, Count Almaviva

Hanna-Elisabeth Müller, Countess Almaviva

Peter Kellner, Figaro

Ying Fang, Susanna

Maria Nazarova, Susanna

Patricia Nolz, Cherubino

Stefan Cerny, Doctor Bartolo

Stephanie Houtzeel, Marcellina

Robert Bartneck, Don Basilio

Andrea Giovannini, Don Curzio

Wolfgang Bankl, Antonio

Johanna Wallroth, Barbarina

At half mast: Simon Boccanegra revived in Vienna

Orsolya Gyárfás, 19th April

Marco Armiliato's conducting thrills and Federica Lombardi's radiant Amelia stands out in the Wiener Staatsoper's latest revival of Simon Boccanegra.

***11

Anna Netrebko shines in Vienna’s timeless Tosca

Laura Servidei, 18th April

In a world where opera productions often stray into the abstract, the Wiener Staatsoper’s Tosca offers a refreshing return to tradition – and Anna Netrebko delivers a splendid performance.

****1

Tragedy in the mirror: Minghella’s Madama Butterfly in Vienna

Laura Servidei, 14th March

Ermonela Jaho returns to one of her signature roles as Cio-Cio-San, delivering a searing and deeply nuanced portrayal.

****1

Too much and too little: Jan Lauwers’ restless Clemenza in Vienna

Chanda VanderHart, 12th March

The creative team behind the new Staatsoper Clemenza is unwilling to trust that Mozart’s opera is interesting enough to stand on its own.

***11

An Idomeneo shattered to pieces at the Wiener Staatsoper

Orsolya Gyárfás, 23rd January

A committed cast struggles to lend a spark of life to Kasper Holten's static staging of Mozart's first mature opera.

**111

A holiday Bohème: Puccini, Zeffirelli and tradition in Vienna

Laura Servidei, 21st December

Giacomo Sagripanti conducts a luxuriant reading with a cast anchored by Juan Diego Flórez and Nicole Car, in Zeffirelli’s familiar, generous, unabashedly emotional production.

***11

More reviews...

Chanda VanderHart

Dr. Chanda VanderHart is a pianist, musicologist and creative who lives, works and plays in Vienna, Austria. For more on Chanda and her projects, click here.

Kosky's strongly cast Figaro brings down the house at the Wiener Staatsoper