The Barber of Seville 1823, and became the first opera ever to be performed in Italian in New York, when Manuel Garcia (who played Almaviva) and his Italian troupe opened their first season there with "Il barbiere" on 29 November 1825 at the Park Theatre. The cast of eight had three other members of his family, including the 17-year-old Maria-Felicia, later known as Maria Malibran. The role of Rosina was originally written for a contralto. According to music critic Richard Osborne, writing in "The New Grove Dictionary of Opera", "it is important to record the degree to which singers have sometimes distorted Rossini’s intentions.
Kimberly Barber Kimberly Barber Kimberly Barber (born December 21, 1959) is a Canadian mezzo-soprano and vocal pedagogue. She studied with Patricia Kern at the University of Toronto, graduating in 1983. She received a diploma in operatic performance from the university in 1985. She began her career as a member of the Canadian Opera Company Ensemble, also in 1985. While maintaining a professional opera career, she has been teaching at Wilfrid Laurier University since July 2002 and is currently Coordinator of the Opera Program there. From 1989 to 1994, Barber sang with Oper Frankfurt in Germany. Barber made her New York City Opera