The Royal Opera House is delighted to announce that, this February, Gioachino Rossini’s comic opera The Barber of Seville will hit the big screen. On Wednesday 15 February 2023, the production will be broadcast live to over 900 cinemas in 20 countries across the world.

From the barber’s famous opening number ‘Largo al factotum,’ with its cry of ‘Figaro! Figaro!,’ to Rosina’s feisty aria ‘Una voce poco fa,’ Rossini’s masterpiece is a riotously entertaining affair. First performed over 200 years ago, the opera is packed with fun and mischief. Complete with vocal fireworks, scheming lovers and one very busy barber, it makes for the perfect evening’s entertainment at your local cinema.

For the live broadcast, Rafael Payare conducts a world-class, international cast in Moshe Leiser and Patrice Caurier’s sparkling production: Aigul Akhmetshina as Rosina; Andrzej Filończyk as Figaro; Lawrence Brownlee as Count Almaviva; Bryn Terfel as Don Basilio; Fabio Capitanucci as Bartolo; Ailish Tynan as Berta and Josef Jeongmeen Ahn as Fiorello. Encore screenings will run from Sunday 19 February 2023.

Our cinema programme has brought opera and ballet to audiences across the globe since 2008. For the 2022/23 Season, an astonishing 13 productions from The Royal Ballet and The Royal Opera will be broadcast to more than 1,300 cinemas from the UK all the way to New Zealand. Each broadcast offers audiences the best seat in the house, and includes exclusive behind-the-scenes footage, interviews and insights into the rehearsal process. The programme forms an integral part of our plan to secure our future, expand audiences and continue to help facilitate the vital recovery of cinema domestically and internationally.