Talk:The Barber of Seville/Archive 2
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New York premiere 1825?
I've seen reference to the Garcias doing the Barber in New York on 29 November 1825, claimed to be the first Italian opera ever staged in the US. I've got an earlier date. Grove's Dictionary (5th ed, 1954) says it was put on in NY on 3 May 1819. It was sung in English, but it still counts as a Italian opera. Maybe the 1825 performance was the first US performance of an Italian opera sung in Italian. Does anyone know about this? -- JackofOz (talk) 08:54, 4 March 2009 (UTC)
Useless or Futile?
I've primarily seen translation into English as "The Futile Precaution". See, e.g., the Oxford Dictionary of Plays: http://www.enotes.com/odp-encyclopedia/futile-precaution See productions, e.g., the latest production of the Royal Opera in London in June 2009. See also current translations of the play, e.g. http://www.mellenpress.com/mellenpress.cfm?bookid=2063&pc=9 or http://isbndb.com/d/book/the_barber_of_seville_or_the_futile_precaution.html
Confusingly, I've seen both translations used in a single writeup: e.g.: this quote from the Metropolitan Opera:
To help set his work apart, Rossini called the new opera, Almaviva, or the Useless Precaution. An advertisement printed in the libretto contained this notice: "The comedy by Signor Beaumarchais entitled The Barber of Seville, or the Futile Precaution, is being presented in Rome, adapted as a dramma comico under the title of Almaviva, or the Useless Precaution, this being for the purpose of convincing the public fully of the sentiments of respect and veneration which animate the creator of the music of the present dramma toward the greatly celebrated Paisiello, who dealt with this subject under its original title. http://www.operainfo.org/broadcast/operaBackground.cgi?id=37&language=1
Does anyone have a sense of the primacy of one over the other? --Ross Fraser (talk) 22:38, 22 July 2009 (UTC)
Miscellaneous Errors/Questions
In the "Musical commentary" section there is a mention of "sparkle and harm". Shouldn't that be "sparkle and charm"? —Preceding unsigned comment added by 137.254.4.6 (talk) 19:45, 31 December 2009 (UTC)
- Yes, it should, but I've zapped the whole paragraph, which looks like someone's personal opinion and isn't suited to an encyclopedia article. Actually, most of the article is pretty sub-standard, IMNSHO. --GuillaumeTell 22:40, 31 December 2009 (UTC)