Introducing…

The Barber of Seville

Find out more about Rossini’s razor-sharp romp.

Catchy tunes, clever schemes and close shaves in Rossini’s razor-sharp romp.

A brief introduction:

When Count Almaviva falls in love with the beautiful Rosina from afar he enlists the help of cunning barber Figaro to help him win her. But first they must outwit her guardian Dr Bartolo, who secretly hopes to marry the wealthy heiress himself.

The Barber of Seville is the glittering comic jewel in Rossini’s musical crown, one of the great operas of all time – the greatest comedy of all, according to Verdi.

Rossini takes the gilded bel canto style – all vocal ornament and display – and polishes it to new musical brilliance in bravura ensembles and arias. Add to that uproarious comic situations and characters that spring off the page and you have operatic comedy taken to a whole new level of sophistication. Silliness dipped in musical gold.

Why not to miss it:

The Barber of Seville, Festival 2025. Photo: Tristram Kenton

Annabel Arden’s production has become a contemporary Glyndebourne classic – drawing out all the colour and warmth from the opera’s Spanish setting. Mediterranean blue meets hot pink in Joanna Parker’s sets, and exuberant costumes draw on everything from flamenco to Balenciaga. Add just a dash of surrealism (Dalì was Spanish, after all…) and you get a zany, giddy, highly physical staging that unleashes surprise after surprise – just watch out for airborne harpsichords!

Rossini’s crowd-pleasing score offers the perfect showcase for singers, whose solo virtuosity has to match the intricate, exhilarating musical jigsaws of the ensembles and finales, with their tongue-twisting semiquaver patter. With more sparkle than an interval glass of champagne, The Barber of Seville is the ultimate operatic treat.

Want to know what happens next? The Barber of Seville and The Marriage of Figaro were based on a trilogy of plays by French writer Beaumarchais. With both operas on stage during Autumn Season 2026 you have the perfect opportunity to enjoy the next chapter in the life of Figaro, Almaviva and Rosina in The Marriage of Figaro.

A great moment to look out for:

Wily barber Figaro is never happier than when he’s on the go, running around Seville sorting out everybody else’s problems. Need a wingman? Look no further! What about an escape plan? Figaro’s your guy.

Few characters get a more showstopping musical introduction than his. The larky, endlessly energetic barber erupts onto the stage in Act I with the breathless ‘Largo al factotum’ with its famous repeated shouts of ‘Figaro, Figaro’.

Sunny C major sets the tone for a man who is relentlessly optimistic, while the busy text and chattering melody hint at the showman with no qualms about singing his talents from the rooftops. Five-syllable lines give the aria’s rhythms a wonderful sense of tension and uncertainty – unable to stop its tumbling momentum, even if it wanted to.

Cast and creative team:

Chinese mezzo and former Royal Opera Jette Parker Young Artist Hongni Wu – now a Covent Garden regular – leads the cast as the feisty Rosina, battling against the restrictions of her fusty guardian Dr Bartolo (Italian baritone Fabio Capitanucci – reprising the role he brought both ‘pathos and buffoonery’ to last summer at Glyndebourne).

Rising-star Chinese tenor Anle Gou makes his Festival debut as Count Almaviva, with prize-winning Catalan baritone Lluis Calvet i Pey as his faithful sidekick Figaro. Irish soprano Ailish Tynan returns for another scene-stealing turn as housekeeper Berta, with Turkish bass Cumhur Görgün as Basilio.