Il Barbiere di Siviglia (The Barber of Seville)

Updated June 26, 2020 | Infoplease Staff

Though its premiere was an infamous flop, The Barber of Seville has become a standard of comic opera repertory. Irrepressible Figaro, town barber and jack-of-all-trades, learns that dashing Count Almaviva loves the young, rich and beautiful Rosina, the ward and intended wife of strict Dr. Bartolo. Rosina is equally smitten with the count, whom she has never met, and tosses him a love note from her balcony. Figaro gleefully masterminds an elopement, employing a series of disguises and ruses that bring the lovers together in the nick of time.