As with anything surrounding the genius and mystery of Mozart and his creations, we can really only guess at the truth. We don’t have any certain way of knowing what happened or how any of his pieces were actually composed. We have only to guess. Bearing this in mind it is best to play it conservative and use the few facts and accounts we are given, take it with a grain of salt, and imagine what it could have been like to see Mozart work. One such piece especially shrouded in mystery is The Marriage of Figaro, or Le nozze di Figaro. This four act opera buffa was composed by Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart in 1786 and based on a stage comedy by Pierre Beaumarchais called La folle journe’e, ou le Mariage de Figaro. Figaro’s story was originally banned
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He authored, first, The Barber of Seville, a comedy that combined Morilere with classical Italian characters. The Count plays the part of a youthful lover, and Doctor Bartolo plays a miserly old man, and they both fight for the hand of the fair Rosina. Figaro helps the Count win. In 1788, Beaumarchais did the unthinkable and wrote a sequel, The Marriage of Figaro. The Marriage of Figaro continues the plot of The Barber of Seville and recounts a single “day of madness” in the palace of the Count Almaviva near Seville, Spain. Rosina is now the countess and Dr. Bartolo is now seeking revenge against Figaro for thwarting his plans to marry Rosina himself. Count Almaviva has turned into a skirt-chaser and graciously gave Figaro the position of the head of the servant-staff. The real reason for the generosity is in fact that the Count is continually trying to get Susana, Figaro’s bride-to-be, into bed with him. He continues to find excuses to delay the servant’s wedding which is to be held the very day the play takes place. Frustrated with the Count’s behavior, The Countess, Susanna, and Figaro each attempt to humiliate him and expose his scheming behavior. The count attempts to respond by legally “persuading” Figaro to marry a woman old enough to be his mother who, in the end, turns out to actually be his mother. However, Figaro and Susanna’s clever manipulations eventually lead to the Count …show more content…
In this adventure, not only did the Count not have a traditional happily ever after, but Figaro and his fiancé, Susanna, engage in a battle of wits against their “superior”, the count, and then have the audacity to win. Neal Zaslaw summarizes the problems with this arrangement when he says:
“The play’s implied criticism of the existing social order was enough to ensure it a rocky road in the pre-Revolutionary France, and not until 1784 did the censorship allow a public performance, thanks in part to pressure from the aristocrats who had seen and been delighted by a private production.”
This shift in heart of the French aristocracy led to one of the greatest waves of success of the French Theater. It didn’t take long for the rest of Europe to hear the news from Paris. Translations and printed copies spread quickly, and by early 1785, a German version was in the works in Vienna. The production moved into rehearsal until its performance was banned by an imperial
He authored, first, The Barber of Seville, a comedy that combined Morilere with classical Italian characters. The Count plays the part of a youthful lover, and Doctor Bartolo plays a miserly old man, and they both fight for the hand of the fair Rosina. Figaro helps the Count win. In 1788, Beaumarchais did the unthinkable and wrote a sequel, The Marriage of Figaro. The Marriage of Figaro continues the plot of The Barber of Seville and recounts a single “day of madness” in the palace of the Count Almaviva near Seville, Spain. Rosina is now the countess and Dr. Bartolo is now seeking revenge against Figaro for thwarting his plans to marry Rosina himself. Count Almaviva has turned into a skirt-chaser and graciously gave Figaro the position of the head of the servant-staff. The real reason for the generosity is in fact that the Count is continually trying to get Susana, Figaro’s bride-to-be, into bed with him. He continues to find excuses to delay the servant’s wedding which is to be held the very day the play takes place. Frustrated with the Count’s behavior, The Countess, Susanna, and Figaro each attempt to humiliate him and expose his scheming behavior. The count attempts to respond by legally “persuading” Figaro to marry a woman old enough to be his mother who, in the end, turns out to actually be his mother. However, Figaro and Susanna’s clever manipulations eventually lead to the Count …show more content…
In this adventure, not only did the Count not have a traditional happily ever after, but Figaro and his fiancé, Susanna, engage in a battle of wits against their “superior”, the count, and then have the audacity to win. Neal Zaslaw summarizes the problems with this arrangement when he says:
“The play’s implied criticism of the existing social order was enough to ensure it a rocky road in the pre-Revolutionary France, and not until 1784 did the censorship allow a public performance, thanks in part to pressure from the aristocrats who had seen and been delighted by a private production.”
This shift in heart of the French aristocracy led to one of the greatest waves of success of the French Theater. It didn’t take long for the rest of Europe to hear the news from Paris. Translations and printed copies spread quickly, and by early 1785, a German version was in the works in Vienna. The production moved into rehearsal until its performance was banned by an imperial