BY KAREN BOSSICK

A performance of “The Barber of Seville” will close out the Metropolitan Opera’s 2024-25 Live Simulcast season on Saturday, May 31, at Merlin’s Magic Lantern in Ketchum.

This opera by Rossini is comedic, rather than tragic. And in Bartlett Sher’s hands, it ends up a madcap production.

Mezzo-soprano Aigul Akhmetshina will star as the feisty heroine Rosina who uses her considerable wiles to meet the man who belongs to a mysterious serenader whose voice  has enchanted her.

High-flying tenor Jack Swanson will play her secret beloved Count Almaviva. Peter Kalman plays Dr. Bartolo, Rosina’s ward who keeps her confined to the house with the idea of marrying her.

Bass Alexander Vinogradov plays the music teacher Don Basilio, who suggests to Bartolo that slander might be the best way to get rid of Almaviva. And bass singer Andrey Zhilikhovsky stars as Figaro, the titular barber of Seville, who warns Rosina about the plot.

The conductor is Giacomo Sagripanti.

The opera survived a famously disastrous opening night when it premiered in the 18th century to go on to become what may be the world’s most popular comic operas. Several of the opera’s most recognizable tunes have entered the world’s musical unconscious—most notably, the introductory patter song of the swaggering Figaro.

The production presented by Sun Valley Opera and Broadway, begins at 10:55 a.m. and runs three hours and 55 minutes with one intermission. Tickets are $20, available by credit card only.