Former barber and jack-of-all-trades Figaro is about to be married to the love of his life, Suzanne. But, on the morning of the wedding, he learns that his employer, Count Almaviva has plans to seduce Suzanne himself. Over the course of the wedding day, Figaro, Suzanne, and the Countess carry out an elaborate plot to correct the Count’s licentious ways, using all of the main-stays of French farce: forged letters, disguises, and miscommunications - both intentional and unintentional. While the trickster couple tries to save their marriage, they are interrupted at every turn by the rest of the household: the Countess’ bitter former guardian Bartholo seeking his revenge; the maid Marceline who fancies Figaro; and the Count’s overly-amorous page Cherubin. In the end, everyone gets what they need - even if it’s not what they thought they wanted in the beginning.
The Marriage of Figaro is the second of Beaumarchais’ ‘Figaro Plays’ - a trilogy which defined the genre of French Farce. The Marriage of Figaro is the best-known and best-loved of the trilogy, in no small part due to its famous opera adaptation, which was written by Mozart and Da Ponte less than ten years later.
The Marriage of Figaro guide sections
