Baltimore Opera Company

Study Guide

Le Nozze di Figaro
The Marriage of Figaro

Background

Not much is known about the circumstances surrounding the composition of Nozze, because Mozart's letters and notes from the period have all been lost. What little information we have comes from Da Ponte, who had something of a tendency toward self-aggrandizement. In his account of the creative process, it was he who did all the major work-convincing the political authorities to allow an opera based on a banned work, pulling strings to get the production scheduled, restructuring the story for operatic purposes, and so on.

Whatever the balance of power between Mozart and Da Ponte, the show was a great success when it premiered in 1786. The cast included Francesco Benucci as Figaro; Francesco Busani as Bartolo and Antonio; his wife, Dorotea, as Cherubino, and 12-year-old Anna Gottlieb as Barbarina. Susanna was played by Nancy Storace, an Englishwoman.

Box Office Gift Shop Home