Barber of Seville' offers cutting-edge comedy

Though it was written nearly two centuries ago, Gioacchino Rossini's Il Barbiere di Siviglia (The Barber of Seville) remains one of the most popular titles in the pantheon of opera. And with good reason.

The comedic antics of Figaro, the title character, make for some of the most memorable moments in classical culture. Figaro uses his wit throughout the opera to help Count Almaviva woo and win the heart of fair Rosina (while taking her away from the clutches of old Dr. Bartolo), creating an entangled plot filled with romance, humor, and unparalleled musical finesse.

Which are just some of the many reasons why the Boston Lyric Opera (BLO) selected Il Barbiere to headline its 26th season. The production, which opened last night at the Shubert Theater and continues through Oct. 15, directly follows BLO's hugely successful "Carmen on the Common" extravaganza, which brought opera appreciation to a crowd of thousands on Boston Common. The juxtaposition of these two classic operas back-to-back will hopefully help to solidify opera's place in the Boston cultural scene.

Even Figaro himself, baritone Keith Phares, acknowledges the growing popularity of opera in today's society, explaining that its rise is no accident: "Opera is trying to appeal more to the masses," he said. "They cast less on voice than they used to and more on look/personality... you generally see a lot of good looking young people in the operas."

Carmen had just that, and now Il Barbiere takes the stage with an equally young yet seasoned cast. In addition to Phares, the opera stars mezzo-soprano Margaret Lattimore as Rosina, who has performed her role to great acclaim with several other companies, tenor Lawrence Brownlee as Count Almaviva (fresh from his debut at Italy's Teatro alla Scala), bass-baritone Terry Hodges as Dr. Bartolo, bass Chester Patton as Basilio, and baritone Levi Hernandez as Fiorello. Lattimore, Brownlee, and Hodges are all making their BLO debuts with this production.

"It was a great set-up," Phares explained. "Beginning the season with TheBarber of Seville, people know that opera...the Carmen thing had to have helped."

Though Phares has had extensive operatic experience across the country with companies such as the New York City Opera and the Opera Theatre of St. Louis, he admits to being a little nervous about making his debut performance as Figaro _ especially because all of the other cast members have previously performed their respective roles in other cities.

"It's really scary," said Phares, who received his operatic training at the New England Conservatory. "There's so much expectation on this role in particular. It's a role everyone knows and if you don't do it just right it can be a disaster."

But Phares says he felt better once BLO began rehearsals for Il Barbiere in early September, in part because of what he described as "good chemistry" amongst the production staff and the cast. The company generally rehearses six hours a day, three hours in the mornings and another three in the afternoons, with the singers often marking through the music so as not to strain their voices. The singers come into the rehearsal process with their parts already learned and memorized, enabling most of their energy to be devoted to character development and staging.

"Psychologically it's tough because you feel like the weak link, but I came in memorized and prepared... In terms of the initial prep I've done my job," Phares said. "It's working out really well; [Figaro's] a good role for my voice. I'm very comfortable singing higher stuff."

The fact that the opera's Italian stage director, Stefano Vizioli, has previously mounted this particular version of Il Barbiere all over Italy has also helped Phares come to terms with some of the challenges that come along with singing the part of Figaro.

"Yeah, it's my first time but I'm in the hands of an Italian who knows what he's talking about," Phares said. "Especially because he's Italian, I trust him... he's done this a thousand times"

Vizioli's influence been particularly helpful to Phares because it has allowed him to maintain much of the tradition intertwined within the role of Figaro. Phares, who began singing in high school musical theater productions, admits that he is "not totally comfortable in opera." But this has more to do with preserving integrity than with musical styling, and how he feels his own personality fits into that of the characters he plays.

"I sometimes feel like I'm not doing it justice just because I didn't live in Verdi's time," Phares explained. "I feel I can bring more of myself into contemporary style."

But the world of musical theater is changing, to the point where lyrical singers are often being turned away. Phares explains that opera singers at musical theater auditions have been told that "they're singing too much" and that they "need to talk more." And on the other side of the spectrum, Phares says that he finds that many people have a misconception of opera, and define anything that's completely sung _ even musicals like Les Miserables and Phantom of the Opera _ as fitting into the genre.

"The way [musical theater] is evolving is it's becoming more of a pop idiom," Phares said. "That's what it's been for the people, the masses...the evolution has been geared more and more to what the people want to see; it's almost become a tourist attraction."

And as opera finds its niche with the modern audience, Phares explains why he is personally drawn to the more classical genre, particularly to Mozart's comic operas _ though he admits an affinity to twentieth century pieces by composers like Benjamin Britten.

"Musical theater is more often miked; it's a little more casual, and seems to be a little more spontaneous," he said. "Opera is more planned out, which sort of relaxes everyone on the production end.... And using your own voice to that sort of level _ there are few things that satisfying."

Phares and the rest of the cast of BLO's Il barbiere di Siviglia will deliver just that to Boston audiences, leading off an operatic season filled with both spirited comedy and high drama.

"People should realize the caliber of the singers they're getting, it's a really strong cast, Stephen Lord's a really incredible conductor," Phares said. "I think people will really enjoy the production."

Boston Lyric Opera's 'Il barbiere di Siviglia' opened last night at the Shubert Theater, 256 Tremont Street, Boston, where it will play until Oct. 15. Ticket prices start at $32, with half-price student rush tickets available two hours before the show. The >Daily will feature a review of the production next week.