The Marriage of Figaro
★★★★☆ Delightful
Festival Theatre: Fri 29 May – Sat 6 Jun 2026
Review by Rebecca Mahar
Scottish Opera’s The Marriage of Figaro kicks off a limited engagement at the Festival Theatre in style, delivering a revival of Sir Thomas Allen’s 2010 production full of flair, humour, and outstanding performances.
Set three years after the events of The Barber of Seville, wherein the clever Figaro (Edward Jowle) helped Count Almaviva (Ian Rucker) woo and wed Rosina (Alexandra Lowe), The Marriage of Figaro opens on the morning of Figaro’s wedding to the now-Countess Almaviva’s maid, Susanna (Ava Dodd).
Edward Jowle (Figaro) and Ava Dodd (Susanna) in The Marriage of Figaro. Pic: Mihaela Bodlovic.
Unfortunately, the Count has proven to be a dastardly rake, unfaithful to his wife at every opportunity, and currently in pursuit of Susanna. He might have abolished the custom of droit de seigneur on his estate, but that doesn’t stop him from attempting to seduce Susanna, relying on his pigheaded surety that she won’t be able to resist him, rather than the law.
Susanna confides in Figaro, who begins to cook up a plan to stop the Count while retaining their positions; the Countess and Susanna work together to do the same; and the pageboy Cherubino (Simone McIntosh) attempts to declare his love to the Countess (or to any woman who will listen)
Meanwhile, Marcellina (Jeni Bern), once housekeeper to Rosina’s guardian Doctor Bartolo (Edward Hawkins), plots to trap Figaro into marriage by calling in a debt he owes her and the Count flies about between lust-addled pursuit of Susanna and jealousy-ridden rage at the affair he thinks his wife is conducting. All the while, the wedding plans for that evening proceed apace in the background.
keeps the production sharp
All in all, it’s pretty much everything you could want from a comedy.
The libretto for this enduringly popular Mozart opera is performed in a cracking English translation by Amanda Holden, bringing readily accessible wit to the production. Associate Director Lucy Bradley keeps the production sharp, clipping along through its three-plus hour runtime with admirable pacing.
Alexandra Lowe (Countess Almaviva) and Ava Dodd (Susanna) in The Marriage of Figaro. Pic: Mihaela Bodlovic.
However there are issues. Between acts one and two (of four), the curtain falls for a scene change, conducted in dark and silence. While the change is accomplished in less than three minutes, this pause seemed to confuse a fair portion of the audience, and feels out of place in a production which had opened with a beautiful outdoor-to-indoor transition of scene and scenery, proving that it is more than capable of delivering a full-scale scenic transition in view of the audience.
niggle
There are other technical aspects that niggle in an otherwise sumptuous production: light streaming in at two different angles through the windows at the top of act three; the “garden” consisting entirely of stooks of wheat, without any hint of the pine tree under which an assignation is to occur; a full moon blazing in the background whilst Susanna sings that “the moon is not arisen in the heavens”; and rather obtrusive pieces of set on either side that narrow the stage, recalling the wing and groove scenery of the opera’s Baroque origins.
On another technical note, the production features a pair of slaps that could have used the coaching of a fight director, being delivered not with comedic over-performance but simply without finesse.
Simone McIntosh (Cherubino) in The Marriage of Figaro. Credit Mihaela Bodlovic.
The company of Figaro deliver vocally, comedically, and physically throughout the performance, however.
Jowle as the titular valet balances sincerity and buffoonery, injecting personality into the role at every opportunity without seeking to upstage the true star of the show: Susanna. Dodd’s ringing clarity of tone, diction, and comedic timing ensure Susanna commands the stage, whether in her solo moments or in collaboration with other members of the cast.
McIntosh is a standout as Cherubino, embodying the iconic breeches role with the requisite bravado, and imbuing it with a wonderfully unsubtle horniness. Count Almaviva’s lust, meanwhile, is delivered with ominous entitlement in Rucker’s excellently villainous performance – after all, the villain never believes they’re the villain.
pointed satire
The Count could easily be played for laughs, but while Rucker handles his overtly comedic moments well, he skilfully treads the line of the ridiculous plot that has been laid out for him, and its pointed satire of sexual predation by powerful men on women in their employ.
Simone McIntosh (Cherubino) and Kira Kaplan (Barbarina) in The Marriage of Figaro. Pic: Mihaela Bodlovic.
Sparkling in a supporting role is Kira Kaplan as Barbarina, the young daughter of Antonio (Francis Church) the gardener and cousin to Susanna, infatuated with Cherubino and with a role to play in Almaviva’s downfall. Kaplan skips in and out with radiant energy, soaring voice, and a knife to twist.
This Figaro is a delightful one, bounding along through its riotous story, both satirical and absurd, winking at its more serious messaging while allowing plenty of room for laughs.
This is a production that is sure to please opera die-hards and newcomers alike. It invites its audience into a world of class conflict which highlights the fact that opera, like Shakespeare, ballet, and other artistic forms that have come to acquire a redolence of elitism through no fault of their own, is for all.
Running time: Three hours and 15 minutes (including one interval).
Festival Theatre, 13-29 Nicolson Street EH8 9FT
Mon 29 & Sun 31 May; Tue 2, Thurs 4 & Sat 6 June 2026.
Evenings (not Sun): 7:15pm; Sun 31 only: 3pm.
Tickets and details: Book here.
His Majesty’s Theatre, Rosemount Viaduct, Aberdeen, AB25 1GL
Thurs 11 & Sat 13 June 2026.
Evenings: 7:15pm.
Tickets and details: Book here.
Eden Court, Bishop’s Road, Inverness, IV3 5SA
Thurs 18 and Sat 20 June 2026.
Evenings: 7:15pm.
Tickets and details: Book here.
Edinburgh access performances: the 31 May performance will be audio described, with a touch tour available before the show. A shortened, Dementia Friendly Access Opera performance will take place on 5 June at 3pm.
The cast of The Marriage of Figaro. Pic: Mihaela Bodlovic.
ENDS
