The Barber of Seville / Austin Lyric Opera : 4 of 5

Austin Lyric Opera is now officially in transition from their old home at Bass Concert Hall to the new Long Center next year, so the last opera of this season was performed at Riverbend Centre. This venue definitely wasn't designed for opera (since it's really a church!), but it allowed this production to go all out with a light-hearted total comedy version of The Barber of Seville. Since the stage is small and has no curtain, the only sets consisted of huge decorated boxes with drawers and cabinets full of props. The orchestra itself was onstage, so the actors took every opportunity to include them in the jokes (it's not often the conductor becomes part of the show!). For the most part, the humor was hilarious, but there were a few times I thought it went too far (especially when at times it actually took the audience's attention away from the aria being sung!). Even so, this is still one of the best productions of this opera I've seen, and I managed to enjoy it all without thinking of Bugs Bunny the entire time (since Rossini's music is all over Warner Bros. cartoons)! I was completely impressed with Sandra Piques Eddy making her Austin debut as Rosina - besides having a beautiful, powerful voice, she was downright beautiful and bursting with energetic charisma. I don't think the pews at Riverbend were designed for three hours of sitting (ouch!), but I still thoroughly enjoyed the close of the opera season!