Comedy and Vocal Virtuosity (Kentucky Opera)
The Barber of Seville
Music by Giaochino Rossini
Libretto by Cesare Sterbini
Based on a play by Pierre Beaumarchais Directed by Ben Robinson Conducted by Emily Senturia
Review by Jeanne-Marie Rogers
Entire contents are copyright © 2026 Jeanne-Marie Rogers. All rights reserved.
The Kentucky Opera made a triumphant return “Back to the Brown (Theatre)” with its energetic production of “The Barber of Seville” by Giaochino Rossini. The Brown was buzzing with excitement as opera patrons took their seats and awaited the famous overture. Emily Senturia returns to conduct a small orchestra, which gave a lively rendition of the music made famous by Warner Brothers’ LooneyTunes in “The Rabbit of Seville.” The reduced orchestration was by Jonathan Lyness.
After a series of arias introducing themselves and their motives, the characters settle in to the shenanigans that serve as a plot. As the would-be lover Count Almaviva (disguised as the poor Lindoro), tenor Minghao Liu is appropriately winsome when he serenades the beautiful Rosina, portrayed with diva power by Lisa Marie Rogali. Figaro (Charles H. Eaton) comes boisterously down the aisle for his iconic entrance aria and establishes himself as the go-to man to resolve any difficulty – for a price. Brian Kontes is a hoot as the equally opportunistic Don Basilio, showing no qualms about selling out his bestie Doctor Bartolo (Dennis Jesse) who also wants to marry Rosina. This is no “park and bark” opera – the
performers captured the hearts of the audience through their physical comedy as well as their vocal virtuosity. In a uniformly strong cast, Eaton and Rogali in particular made it all seem so easy and fun. The production was directed by Kentucky Opera’s new General Director/CEO Ben Robinson, himself a former KO Studio Artist who performed on the Brown Theatre stage. He developed a solid narrative filled with delightful references, including callbacks to the cartoon shaving scene between Bugs Bunny and Elmer Fudd. It was wonderful to see this classic opera buffa in an equally classic venue, while visual and cultural reminders brought the action into the 1980’s for a bit of added amusement. The final performance started at 2:00 PM on Sunday.
The Barber of Seville
Kentucky Opera
October 9 2026 at 7:30 pm October 11 2026 at 2 pm
W.L. Lyons Brown Theatre 315 W Broadway Louisville KY 40202
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