Jay Aldridge <[log in to unmask]> wrote:

>I recently saw a live performance of Mozart's "The Marriage Of Figaro"
>and was wondering why three arias were left out in the beginning of the
>fourth act.  Barbarina's, Marcellina's, and Basilio's arias are those in
>question...  Is this something that is done regularly or only by this
>particular company?

The reason that these arias are usually cut is not only for the
sake of time, but for dramatic coherence.  The first three acts of
this masterpiece are some of the best written in all of opera in terms
of musical content, dramatic coherence, and movement.  The inclusion of
these rather insignificant (apologies issued to all soubrettes, mezzos,
and basso-buffos reading) arias slows the dramatic pace of the opera which
begins to get a little silly at this point anyway.  The virtues of the
digital age allow the listener to choose whether or not to listen, a
feature not usually present in the theater!

Jonathan Knapp