1. Overture - Riccardo Muti (Le nozze di Figaro Firenze'79)

[giovannibrunoro]

gradiosa!!!! questa sì che è la sua velocità..

[AmericanEvita]

Despite the criticism here, I find this production to be very lovely. It's authentic to the period (1700's) and to the time of Mozart, the costumes are great, the sets and backgrounds, especially the garden at the end. I suppose the interior of the mansion could have used more furniture and more bric-a-brac but it's still better than today's awful post modern garbage. James Morris, Helen Donath, Margaret Marshall and Thomas Allen are excellent. Five stars

[TurpisHaereticum1]

What a great opera.

[pppbubs]

This was the first opera I played with the Maggio. What a walk down memory lane!

[hocbes]

An interesting Figaro, thank you for posting the whole opera.

You don't mention the producer ? Any idea who he is ?

I think I remember reading at the time (30 years ago !) a review of a production by Antoine Vitez, I think I recognize the sets from the photo that was published alongside that review... is this the Antoine Vitez production ?

[antmusique]

It is! I just checked the opening credits. Impressive memory :)

[hocbes]

Thanks for the answer - I recognized the hay stacks from act IV ! ;)

This is very disappointing, as Antoine Vitez was one of the most inventive and brilliant French "metteurs en scène" of his time - this production of Nozze is dull and static, and yet I saw Beaumarchais's "Mariage de Figaro" produced by Vitez at La Comédie Française in the 90s, which was an astounding and breathtaking whirlwind of a production...

Maybe he was cautious with singers, and dared not ask too much of them ?

[antmusique]

Re: being cautious with singers. If this is the explanation, he was underestimating them so very much!

Anyway, it *is* an extremely static production. The camera work isn't helping either...