The Barber of Seville (1948 film) The Barber of Seville (1948 film) The Barber of Seville (French: Le Barbier de Séville) is a French film directed by Jean Loubignac released in 1948. It is a screen version of the 1816 opera by Rossini based on the play by Beaumarchais (in the translation by Castil-Blaze). Filmed at the Billancourt Studios it uses the Théâtre national de l'Opéra-Comique production of the time. It was filmed in 1947, released in May 1948, and lasts around 95 minutes. The opera had been seen at all the principal lyric theatres in Paris; at the Salle Favart it had been performed over
Palmo's Opera House the Vicomte de Serval. The company went on to present the first opera by Giuseppe Verdi ever staged in the United States, "I Lombardi alla prima crociata" on March 3, 1847. Other operas staged that year at Palmo's included the New York premiere of "Lucrezia Borgia" and another staging of "The Barber of Seville". Despite making some notable achievements, the Sanquirico-Patti Opera company did not fare well financially against a new opera rival in the city, the touring Havana Opera Company, partly due to the much nicer accommodations and better production value at the Park Theatre where the Havana company