Humor and High Jinks in Rossini's 'The Barber of Seville'
b'Despite its disastrous premiere in 1816 \\u2014 complete with raucous heckling, a bloody nose and a stray cat scampering across the stage \\u2014 Rossini\\u2019s\\xa0The Barber of Seville\\xa0quickly joined the ranks of the best-loved and most-performed operas in the world. Based on the first of a trilogy of plays by the French writer Pierre Beaumarchais (the second of which is\\xa0The Marriage of Figaro),\\xa0Barber\\xa0is full of characters and tunes that have delighted audiences for centuries.\\nIn this episode, the He Sang/She Sang team talks with WQXR morning show host Jeff Spurgeon about why Figaro\\u2019s memorable aria \\u201cLargo al factotum\\u201d is a baritone\\u2019s \\u201ccalling card\\u201d aria and how Rossini\\u2019s music has found its way into movies, TV commercials and everyone\\u2019s favorite Saturday morning cartoons.'