The opera was performed the weekend of July 15-17. Noting the overall outstanding quality of the production was Seen and Heard International: “An excellent cast of singers, a strong vision from the artistic team and Mozart’s incomparably brilliant music will make audiences forget their worries for three hours.” The reviewer added, for good measure, “That is something we could all probably use.” Norman Garrett as Count Almaviva (Photo credit: Sunny Martini)Īfter the end of the school year, Kazaras then traveled to Santa Barbara to direct Tchaikovsky’s Eugene Onegin for the Music Academy of the West. Figaro’s playfully using the tape measure intended for the bed to measure Susanna.”

As always, Kazaras excelled in the small touches that came off as waggish and witty yet subtle e.g.

The reviewer for Broadway World wrote: “Kazaras made the most of the ingenious opera’s comedic opportunities throughout the evening, and captured the Rossini-like chaos and confusion of the act-ending ensembles with aplomb.

“ Despite all the restrictions and worry, we all knew we had done something important – and the continuous laughter of the audience was like medicine for the soul!” Production photo from The Marriage of Figaro at Seattle Opera, 2022Ĭritics also noted Kazaras’s attention to detail. “It was thrilling to return to Seattle Opera after several years to work with a team of great artists in putting together this show,” said Kazaras. Indeed, this was a Figaro with a light, amiable touch that zeroes in on Mozart’s and Da Ponte’s impeccable comic pacing.” This was “not just in the erotic sense, though that abounds, but a desire to grasp for meaning for some sort of reassurance amid the bafflement…. The reviewer for Bachtrack noted that Kazaras’s staging “underscore(d) the keenness of desire” in the opera. The Seattle Times noted Kazaras’s subtle direction that allowed for the evergreen themes of love, betrayal and competition-between-the-sexes to bubble to the surface. A perennial favorite at the Seattle Opera, Kazaras directed the opera with touches of grandeur and whimsy, allowing Mozart’s voice to speak through what Kazaras proudly called “the tremendous talent of our fabulous performers.” Soraya Mafi & Ryan McKinny Shine in Mozart’s Classic Masterwork

Kazaras, distinguished professor and director of Opera UCLA, recently directed Mozart’s The Marriage of Figaro for the Seattle Opera.

Marriage of figaro seattle opera