On Saturday October 3rd, the fall heats up for cinema opera fans with a special presentation of Teatro Real Madrid’s dazzling THE BARBER OF SEVILLE at select Landmark Cinemas locations and other select theatres in Canada. Distributed worldwide by DigiScreen, the highly acclaimed production appears on select Canadian screens as part of an ongoing cinema series from the world’s great stages presented by The Royal Opera House’s Opus Arte.
The sparkling production of Rossini’s delightful comedy is led by two of today’s greatest opera stars - María Bayo as the young ward Rosina and Juan Diego Flórez as her handsome suitor, Count Almaviva. The wily Figaro (the Barber) is played by the wonderful lyric baritone Pietro Spagnoli, Bruno Practicò is the hapless guardian Don Bartolo, and the cunning singing teacher Basilio is the renowned Ruggero Raimondi. Beautifully staged by Emilio Sagi, the Teatro Real production is a visual delight, from its opening moments of silver and white elegance to its closing explosion of boisterous colour. The Orquesta Titular del Teatro Real Madrid, conducted by Gianluigi Gelmetti, plays Rossini’s glittering score with flair and grace, while star performances from Bayo and Flórez lift the production into the breathtaking realm of the extraordinary.
Critics have lavished praise on the Teatro Real’s production. “Overflowing with a mischievous joy for life that is infectious! A dazzlingly colourful closing scene is a true masterstroke!” - Classical Net Review. The Sunday Times pronounced superstar Juan Diego Flórez “dazzlingly virtuosic“.
Montreal distributor DigiScreen, in association with Royal Opera House’s Opus Arte, releases 10-16 HD productions throughout the year. THE BARBER OF SEVILLE was captured in High Definition and Surround Sound before a live audience at Teatro Real Madrid in 2005.
Tickets will be available at $19.95 + tax per adult, $16.95 + tax per senior and $9.95 + tax per child. For cinema locations and to purchase advance tickets throughout Canada visit www.digiscreen.ca. For Landmark Cinemas in Alberta and BC, go to www.landmarkcinemas.com. For independent theatres in Vancouver and Waterloo please visit www.festivalcinemas.ca, www.princesscinemas.com.
About Teatro Real Madrid
From its inauguration in 1850 through to the present day, Teatro Real has occupied a prominent place on the European circuit, thanks to the succession of great performers who graced its stage. In 1863, Giuseppe Verdi himself arrived to complete the final preparations for the first performance of his opera La forza del destino with a cast that included Lagrange and Fraschini. Many architectural and structural changes have been made over the years and in 1997 the Teatro Real was re-inaugurated as the home of opera in Madrid. It features a world-class stage, whose 1,472 square metres and 18 articulated platforms provide the required space for complex scene changes and can be arranged in a large variety of ways to accommodate different requirements both on stage and in the orchestra pit. The auditorium retains exquisite historical details such as the drop curtain and exact reproductions of the decorated ceilings and boxes installed in 1850. Now a National Monument, Madrid’s Opera House dominates the Plaza de Oriente.
