Baritone Lucas Meachem is also completely perfect in the title role, his personable Figaro has a lot of appeal. Mack is visibly pregnant, and I felt exhausted for her, but she sang with vivid lightness and warmth throughout. Mezzo-soprano Daniela Mack (Rosina) and tenor Alek Shrader (Almaviva) are adorable little lovebirds on and off stage, and their voices are both well-suited to Rossini. Bass-baritone Philip Skinner is a very amusing Dr. Bass Kenneth Kellogg made the most of Don Basilio's "La calunnia," his deep, rich tones are impressive. Her sound is incisive and completely distinct from any of the Rosinas she's been cast with. I've heard mezzo Catherine Cook as Berta dozens of times, but she always brings verve to the role. It was so pleasing to see and hear so many beloved and familiar opera singers in this Barber, nearly the whole cast has been in the Merola Opera Program. The images read well from afar and make the drive-in aspect of the production feasible. It is definitely busy, there are four screens that can be moved about, but it works. The set was meant for the Fidelio production that was to have been performed last September, and is repurposed here with lots and lots of video projections of the San Francisco opera house. The opera is presented as a rehearsal at our beloved opera house, and we hear Managing Director of Production Jennifer Good as the Stage Manager, threading together the arias and ensembles as they unfold in dressing rooms, rehearsal spaces, and on the opera stage. It made me really look forward to hearing all the musicians again back at the War Memorial, and hopefully Cox gets a chance in a proper orchestra pit with them. Despite these challenges, the proceedings were lively and bright, only the horn sounded hesitant at the April 24 performance I attended. Maestro Roderick Cox made a fine debut conducting the 18 members of a mostly masked and socially-distanced orchestra from a tent behind the stage. The new production from director Matthew Ozawa is bold and fun. San Francisco Opera presented a delightful drive-in version of The Barber of Seville (pictured, photograph by Stefan Cohen) at Marin Center starting last Friday.
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