February 13 – 15, 2026 | San Diego Civic Theatre
February 13 – 15, 2026
San Diego Civic Theatre
Music by Gioachino Rossini
Libretto by Cesare Sterbini
Conducted by Yves Abel
Directed by Chuck Hudson
Rossini’s hilarious prequel to Mozart’s The Marriage of Figaro was considered a must-see long before Bugs Bunny brought its frenetic overture to an even larger audience. Count Almaviva is in love with the beautiful Rosina, but how can he get past her paranoid and greedy guardian, Dr. Bartolo? Enter the charismatic, quick-witted barber Figaro, who will stop at nothing to play matchmaker for his lovesick friend. Filled with side-splitting hijinks, mistaken identities, and some of the most popular opera music ever written, this Barber will have you rolling in the aisles before you leave humming Rossini’s infectious tunes.
Sung in Italian with English and Spanish translations projected above the stage.
Season Sponsors
Prebys Foundation
City of San Diego
Buy an Opera Package and Save!
Pair The Barber of Seville with Pagliacci (Oct 31 – Nov 2), Carmen (March 27–29), and/or Fellow Travelers (July 10–12) and save up to 25% off single ticket prices.
3-opera packages start at $156
Dean Murphy
Figaro
“His superb baritone gave real heft to the slick and natty Figaro.”
~Bachtrack
Dean Murphy
Figaro
San Diego Opera debut.
Recent and Upcoming: Albert in Werther (Deutsche Oper Berlin); Prince Yeletsky in Pique Dame (Deutsche Oper Berlin); Der junge Herr in Der Protagonist (Teatro La Fenice); The King’s Herald in Lohengrin (Deutsche Oper Berlin); Figaro in The Barber of Seville (Royal Danish Opera, Deutsche Oper Berlin); Marcello in La bohème (Deutsche Oper Berlin); Araldo in Macbeth (Deutsche Oper Berlin); Lord Enrico Ashton in Lucia di Lammermoor (Deutsche Oper Berlin); Marchese D’Obigny in La traviata (Deutsche Oper Berlin); Morales in Carmen (Deutsche Oper Berlin); Marco in Il tabarro (Deutsche Oper Berlin); Silvio in Cavalleria rusticana (Deutsche Oper Berlin).
Stephanie Doche
Rosina
“Her velvety mezzo-soprano voice and beautiful stage presence make for an excellent Rosina.”
~onStage Pittsburgh
Stephanie Doche
Rosina
San Diego Opera Highlights: Suzuki in Madama Butterfly.
Recent and Upcoming: Angelina in La Cenerentola (Fort Worth Opera); Sesto in La clemenza di Tito (Washington Concert Opera); Title role in Carmen (Tulsa Opera, Opera Memphis); Rosina in The Barber of Seville (Indianapolis Opera, Pittsburgh Opera, Florida Grand Opera, Gulfshore Opera); Piacere in Il trionfo del Tempo e del Disinganno (Opera NEO); Isabella in L’italiana in Algeri (St. Pete Opera); Title role in Ariodante (Opera NEO); La Muse in Les Contes d’Hoffman (Opéra Louisiane); Narciso in Agrippina (Florida Grand Opera); Maddalena in Rigoletto (Florida Grand Opera); Eunice Hubbell in A Streetcar Named Desire (Florida Grand Opera); Romeo in I Capuleti e i Montecchi (Teatro Nuovo).
Minghao Liu
Count Almaviva
“His instrument has tonal warmth which he employs with consummate legato.”
~Voce di Meche
Minghao Liu
Count Almaviva
San Diego Opera debut.
Recent and Upcoming: Title role in Le comte Ory (Merola Opera Program); Count Almaviva in The Barber of Seville (Opera Omaha, Gulfshore Opera, Frost Opera Theatre); Il Cavaliere Belfiore in Il viaggio a Reims (Opera Philadelphia); Tenor in Verdi’s Messa da Requiem (Savannah Philharmonic); Tancredi in The Leopard (American Opera Project); Alfred in Die Fledermaus (Opera in Williamsburg).
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Patrick Carfizzi
Doctor Bartolo
Patrick Carfizzi
Doctor Bartolo
San Diego Opera highlights: Dr. Bartolo in The Barber of Seville (Drive-In); Major-General Stanley in The Pirates of Penzance; Henry Kissinger in Nixon in China.
Recent and Upcoming: Don Bartolo in The Barber of Seville (San Francisco Opera, The Metropolitan Opera, Lyric Opera of Chicago); Sheldon Anapol in The Amazing Adventures of Kavalier & Clay (The Metropolitan Opera); A Sacristan in Tosca (Boston Symphony Orchestra, The Metropolitan Opera); Title role in Don Pasquale (Opera Theatre of Saint Louis); Donna Agata Scannagali in Viva la Mamma (Florentine Opera); Don Basilio in The Barber of Seville (Opera Theatre of Saint Louis); Leporello in Don Giovanni (Boston Baroque); Fra Melitone in La forza del destino (Müpa Budapest, The Metropolitan Opera); Sprecher in Die Zauberflöte (The Metropolitan Opera); Don Alfonso in Così fan tutte (Tanglewood).
Craig Colclough
Don Basilio
Craig Colclough
Don Basilio
San Diego Opera debut.
Recent and Upcoming: Sir John Falstaff in Falstaff (LA Opera); Title role in Macbeth (Theatro Municipal de São Paulo); Gerhard in The Amazing Adventures of Kavalier & Clay (The Metropolitan Opera); Parson/Badger in The Cunning Little Vixen (Des Moines Metro Opera); Baron Scarpia in Tosca (Seattle Opera); Nick Shadow in The Rake’s Progress (Opera Omaha); Comte Capulet in Roméo et Juliette (LA Opera); Alberich in Götterdämmerung (Tiroler Festspiele Erl); Der Holländer in Der fliegende Holländer (GöteborgsOperan); Alberich in Siegfried (Omroep Muziek); Leporello in Don Giovanni (LA Opera).
Tasha Hokuao Koontz
Berta
Tasha Hokuao Koontz
Berta
San Diego Opera highlights: Annina in La traviata; Edith in The Pirates of Penzance; Frasquita in Carmen; The High Priestess in Aida; soloist in Ascension (Without Walls Festival); Frida 1 in El último sueño de Frida y Diego; Suor Genovieffa in Suor Angelica; Nella in Gianni Schicchi; Donna Anna in Don Giovanni.
Recent and Upcoming: Hana Hooper Ha’alilio in The Sheltering Tree (Hawai’i Opera Theater); Mimì in La bohème (Maryland Opera, Opera on the Avalon); title role in Tosca (Hawai’i Opera Theater, Ópera Nacional de Chile, South Bend Lyric Opera); Erste Dame in Die Zauberflöte (Central City Opera); Niña in Ainadamar (The Metropolitan Opera).
Joseph Calzada
Fiorello
Joseph Calzada
Fiorello
San Diego Opera debut.
Recent and Upcoming: Doctor Grenville in La traviata (Opera San José); Morales in Carmen (Gulfshore Opera); Masetto in Don Giovanni (Livermore Valley Opera); 2nd Armoured Man in The Magic Flute (Opera San José); Don Alfonso in Così fan tutte (SFCM Opera Theatre); British Major in Silent Night (Wolf Trap Opera); Title Role in Gianni Schicchi (SFCM Opera Theatre); Barone Douphol in La traviata (Festival Opera); Zoroastro in Orlando (SFCM Historical Performance); Belcore in The Elixir of Love (Greek Opera Studio); Fiorello in The Barber of Seville (IU Opera Theater).
Yves Abel
Conductor
"Abel classily leads the Barbiere score with a sparkling sense of rhythm, elegantly accompanying the singers, communicating consistently with the stage, and executing everything with precision."
~L'Ape Musicale
Yves Abel
Conductor
San Diego Opera Highlights: San Diego Opera Principal Conductor from 2020-present. Conductor – The Daughter of the Regiment; Pagliacci; Madama Butterfly; Carmen; Roméo et Juliette; Suor Angelica and Gianni Schicchi; Don Giovanni; Salome, La traviata.
Recent and Upcoming: Chief Conductor – Nordwestdeutsche Philharmonie, 2005 to 2021; Principal Guest Conductor – Deutsche Oper Berlin, 2005 to 2013; Conductor – Carmen (Royal Sweden Opera, Wiener Staatsoper); Mahler’s Symphony No. 5 (Opéra Nice Côte d’Azur); Roméo et Juliette (Canadian Opera Company); Turandot (Savonlinna Opera Festival); Dialogues des Carmélites (Teatro Regio Turin); La Damnation de Faust (Opernhaus Zürich); La fille du régiment (London’s Royal Opera Covent Garden); Armida (Rossini Opera Festival).
Chuck Hudson
Director
"Barber of Seville is a witty confection: director Chuck Hudson gives it a new patina. His emphasis on physical busyness is a model true to the extravagant nature of the piece that also enhances the characters."
~Pioneer Press
Chuck Hudson
Director
San Diego Opera debut.
Recent and upcoming: Stage Director – The Barber of Seville (Minnesota Opera, Annapolis Opera); Don Giovanni (Boston Baroque); La bohème (Fort Worth Opera, Florentine Opera, Hawaii Opera Theatre); Pagliacci (Pittsburgh Festival Opera, Opera San Jose); Ariadne auf Naxos (Arizona Opera); Don Pasquale (Pittsburgh Opera, Fort Worth Opera, Minnesota Opera, The Atlanta Opera, Cincinnati Opera, Arizona Opera); Aida (Opera Naples); Falstaff (Opera Saratoga); Carmen (Knoxville Opera).
Set and Projection Design
Tim Wallace
Lighting Design
Abigail Hoke-Brady
Costume Design
Jess Goldstein
Hair and Makeup Design
Jenn Hill
Resident Conductor/Chorus Master
Bruce Stasyna
Assistant Director
Matthew Haney
Diction Coach
Emanuela Patroncini
Stage Manager
Carmen Catherine Alfaro
Supertitle Caller
Oxana Bulgakova
Assistant Stage Managers
Caitlynn Sandoval
Adrian Speth
Musical Preparation
Catherine Miller
Production Assistant
Holden Fox
Opera Uncorked
January 22 at 6:00 pm
Learn more about The Barber of Seville at Opera Uncorked, part of a fun, casual series of events exploring everything you need to know about the operas in our season. It’s the perfect evening to whet your operatic appetite just a few weeks before performances, featuring a presentation by Resident Conductor Bruce Stasyna sure to be every bit as scintillating as the wine and cheese served upon your arrival. Bruce will discuss the opera’s history, what to listen for, and some of the interesting challenges and fun facts about producing opera.
Pre-Performance Talk
February 13, 14, and 15
Beat the traffic and get the most out of the performance at a free 25-minute talk in the auditorium 50 minutes prior to each opera performance. It’s a great way to learn about the opera and note what to listen for!
Post-Opera Talk-Back
February 14 and 15
Immediately following the performance on Saturday and Sunday, join us in the Dress Circle seating section for an informative Q&A with San Diego Opera staff and cast members.
Corporate Sponsors
