Mozart - Le nozze di Figaro (The Marriage of Figaro) / Jean-Pierre Vincent · Paolo Olmi

Mozart - Le nozze di Figaro (The Marriage of Figaro) / Jean-Pierre Vincent · Paolo Olmi - G. Furlanetto · ... | Giovanni Furlanetto, Elzbieta Szmytka | Near Perfect Balance

DVDs:

Mozart - Le nozze ...

	Mozart - Le nozze di Figaro (The Marriage of Figaro) / Jean-Pierre Vincent · Paolo Olmi - G. Furlanetto · ... Giovanni Furlanetto, Elzbieta Szmytka Kultur Video, 2001 average customer review:based on 15 reviews view larger image
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highly recommended

This acclaimed production by the former actor and director Jean-Pierre Vincent is infused with a real knowledge and understanding of Beaumarchais and da Ponte and is entirely faithful to the spirit of Mozart's immensely popular, vivacious amorous intrigue. Set in the eighteenth century, the subtly stylized stage designs by artist Jean Paul Chambas recreate the age of enlightenment with a Spanish flavor. Giovanni Furlanetto's Figaro is beautifully musical and well-acted, capturing all the gaiety, grace, goodwill and optimism of the part. Elzbieta Szmytka is a lively, natural and commanding Susanna. Vincent's exceptional production of Mozart's incomparable masterpiece is a spectacularly theatrical and musical experience. 193 minutes, with English subtitles.

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This one 'hooked' me on Opera for good!

This production is a sheer delight. I remember saying "No wonder opera won't go away after 400 years" when experiencing this for the first time. Mozart's penchant for making all the characters, no matter what side of the conflict they are on, completely irresistable. You'll want all these delightful folks to get their way. (except, perhaps, the Count!) Very well photographed, in a simple, yet elegant set. Szymtka, while not a natural beauty, aces the two suductive arias. And, her 'letter duet' with the Contessa will melt you into a puddle. I have seen 3 other versions of her role that don't come close. Furlanetto, as Figaro, is exceptionally fun to watch and hear. The rest of the well-balanced cast fills in nicely, to fill the 3 hours with more comedy, poignant moments, drama, and great music than seems possible. Out of about 80 versions of various operas I have seen so far, this is still my favorite.

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Near Perfect Balance

No recording of Le Nozze di Figaro would ever get less than 5 stars from me unless the singers were sadly out of tune. This performance certainly has no such flaw; the singers are splendid and vocally suitable to their roles. The sets are charming. The stage action is gracefully theatrical. This is an extremely well-balanced ensemble of music, theater and visual art. Other performances may include more enormous vocal talents, but few could be more enjoyable.

BRAVO BRAVO !!!

I really enjoyed this opera clarity of the DVD was Excellant
I felt like I was viewing from a "live" audience

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sound, performance, ok, not great.

This one was performed before a live audience and recorded with parabolic mikes, I think. The sound quality is reasonably good, but there are thin spots in places when someone turns her head at the wrong place. Also, the miking picks up an inordinate amount of footfall noise, but it probably isn't worse objectively than in a live performance; you just notice it more on a dvd. The singers all have good strong voices, and the acting is reasonably good.

It's worth the money, but if a really good nozze comes along, you're probably going to want to buy that one too.

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Quaint performance of a masterpiece opera.

This is a quaint performance, the sparse stage does not detract from the nice performances. My only real quibble is the sound quality. For a DVD released in 2001, I was surpised that it only had 2.0 stereo. Add to that the fact that I had to turn the volume way up on the stereo just to get normal output.
Overall good, but could be better sound-wise.

reviews: page 1, 2, 3

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