Le Nozze di Figaro review – astute period staging of Mozart’s masterpiece is as poignant as it is funny

Glyndebourne, SussexMariame Clément allows the story of the predatory Count to resonate across the centuries in this exhilaratingly well performed and eye-catching production When Glyndebourne opened its doors in 1934, it did so with The Marriage of Figaro, the first in a fabled line of productions of Mozart’s comic masterpiece to grace its stages over the last 90 years. If the director Mariame Clément felt any pressure, it didn’t show. Hers is a nuanced staging that manages to be astute, funny and moving all at once. It’s also extremely well sung.The opera is about many things, but a great deal hinges on the ancient concept of droit de seigneur, a barbaric medieval custom whereby a feudal lord was entitled to have sex with a female servant on her wedding night. Mozart’s Count, we learn, has made a show of ending the tradition, though he still hopes to bed the feisty Susanna, maidservant to his estranged Countess. Clément sets the show in its original period, allowing its parallels to resonate across the centuries with today’s audiences, and so they do. Continue reading...

Comments

Culture

Love Island USA’s Yulissa reveals how producers quietly removed her from the show over racial slurs

Independent

Comments

Culture

Love Island USA’s Yulissa reveals how producers quietly removed her from the show over racial slurs

Lena Dunham on fatphobia, dating advice and her new London rom-com

Midge Ure announces dates for ‘immersive’ tour

Wayne Rooney ‘lands £800,000 Match of the Day deal’ after Gary Lineker’s exit

Sabrina Carpenter brings out Duran Duran at second sold-out BST Hyde Park set

Live Aid at 40 doesn’t go easy on Bob Geldof

Gripping action prequel soars up Netflix charts as fans declare it ‘best in franchise’

Carla Maxwell, Keeper of the José Limón Flame, Dies at 79

Drake seemingly calls out friends who ditched him amid Kendrick Lamar beef in new song

Kneecap at Finsbury Park: 'infamy doesn't weigh heavily on them'

Fontaines D.C. at Finsbury Park: 'the band of their generation'

The Charlatans at Castlefield Bowl: 'that other Manchester band should take notes'

Ozzy Osbourne and Black Sabbath Play Final Shows in Birmingham, England

Rapper 4xtra reportedly loses his fingers in horrific fireworks accident on Fourth of July

Taskmaster 2025 winner reveals what you didn’t see in ‘best season ever’

Taskmaster 2025 winner reveals plans to return to the show after ‘masterpiece’ season

Glastonbury headliner’s whopping fee revealed after controversial performance

Atsuko Okatsuka

Nicole Scherzinger to perform solo show at Royal Albert Hall

It’s been 16 years since the most ‘disturbing’ Doctor Who story ever

‘I’m a diehard Lana Del Rey fan – everyone’s wrong about her new tour’

Hollywood heavyweight crashes Black Sabbath mosh pit at last ever gig

Maria Kopieva, writer and essayist with 'deeply humane' voice, passes away

Too Much star Megan Stalter reveals she was terrified when Lena Dunham first messaged her

The shocking scandal of American Apparel ‘cult’ unraveled in new Netflix documentary

Sam Kean's new book explores the life of ancient Egyptian kings... by living like one

Strictly Come Dancing bosses ‘eyeing reality star’ for 2025 series

All four episodes of ‘awesome’ survival thriller are free to stream now

The shocking story behind Jennifer Aniston’s latest role as a ‘narcissistic mother’

Fontaines D.C fan told to ‘put Palestinian t-shirt in the bin’ at London gig

Vicky Pattison 'set to join Strictly Come Dancing line-up after wowing bosses'

‘Divisive’ comedy thriller with shocking ending available to stream for free on BBC iPlayer

Amazon’s James Bond casting wishlist revealed including major breakout star

Film hailed ‘one of the greatest ever made’ now available on Amazon Prime

British actor claims stepping into James Bond role is a ‘nightmare’

New Brad Pitt movie’s $144,000,000 opening weekend is biggest of his career

Paul Walker’s character returning to Fast & Furious franchise 12 years after his death

Bend It Like Beckham director returns with first sports film in 23 years

Iconic star, 99, sparks concern after dropping out of event due to illness

Netflix is quietly adding a ‘tearjerking’ fan favourite

Hollywood actor said James Bond should be a drug addict who hates women

Beloved British actress edges out Zendaya as favourite for Bond Girl

I was electrified seeing my favourite historical drama in the most epic way ever

James Cameron labels Christopher Nolan’s Oscar-winning triumph ‘a moral cop out’

Tom Cruise’s ‘breathtaking’ 00s sci-fi hit quietly arrives on Netflix

Classic comedy branded ‘most blasphemous ever’ is available to stream

The King and I actress and beauty pageant star Maureen Hingert dies aged 88

Jurassic World Rebirth leaves fans with clenched stomachs after ‘genuinely tense’ film debuts

Eagerly anticipated horror’s producer explains why ‘0.0 percent watchable’ film flopped

Horror fans ‘terrified’ after disturbing VHS recordings appear in US towns

I spent 10 years getting my second film made – it’s a Scottish samurai Western

‘I’m the new Superman – here’s how I spent my last hour of anonymity’

Star Wars actor Kenneth Colley dies aged 87 after ‘contracting Covid’

Fans dub Christopher Nolan’s The Odyssey ‘life-changing’ as first trailer leaks

How David Attenborough inspired the ‘awe and wonder’ in Jurassic World Rebirth

New Netflix action movie branded ‘tedious’ by critics but fans demand sequel

Meet the ‘hidden’ Russo sibling leading her Marvel director brothers’ studio

‘Expansively unsettling’ and deeply personal horror film finally released in the UK

Hollywood star admits Jurassic World Rebirth role was ‘unlike anything he’d done before’

The Chase viewers left outraged after chaser’s ‘incorrect’ answer steals victory