FROM AROUND THE WORLD: LOS ANGELES.(Review)

"Figaro qua, Figaro la." The lines, of course, are from Rossini's Il Barbiere di Siviglia, but "Figaro here, Figaro there" perfectly sums up the ubiquity of Mozart's Le Nozze di Figaro on West Coast stages in recent years. The work's overexposure, however, does not excuse conductors who race through the score as if their limousines turned into pumpkins at midnight. Nor does it exonerate opera managements who present this work of boundless musical genius as a form of punishment. Increasingly the break between the third and fourth acts is eliminated, forcing audiences to sit through the entire opera with a single twenty-minute intermission. "You will not have a good time in the garden scene," seems to be the message. Los Angeles Opera's most recent Figaro began at 7:30 P.M. and was over before 11:00-surely a relief to those who regard the piece as torture, but a dubious pleasure for those who, though saddle-sore, would like to relish the music.

Genoa-born conductor Marco Guidarini was the evening's speed demon, rarely hesitating long enough to observe Mozart's dynamic mood swings and subtle emotional shadings. He was in charge of a fine cast. Bass-baritone Richard Bernstein, as Figaro, grows ever more secure and appealing in the Mozart roles that suit his vocal range. As Susanna, ingratiating soprano Maria Bayo brought emotional depth to the music. Baritone John Atkins was an alluring brute onstage, one of the few Almavivas of late who ...