Opera Outing: Rossini’s The Barber of Seville
Event Overview
This year, our Little Symphony program is back and in full swing, offering exceptional musical outings that provide children and teenagers with a high-quality musical experience while fostering values of sharing and community!
On Saturday, June 6, 2026, EFBA is delighted to accompany your children to the San Francisco Opera for a performance of The Barber of Seville by Gioachino Rossini—one of the most beloved comic operas of all time.
expect a lively plot full of twists and turns, colorful characters, and unforgettable arias such as Largo al factotum and Una voce poco fa. With its sparkling music and timeless humor, Rossini created a universal masterpiece that has been making audiences of all ages laugh and marvel for over 200 years.
To ensure that your child fully enjoys and appreciates the opera, interactive activities will take place just before the performance, allowing participants to build foundational knowledge of The Barber of Seville in a fun and engaging way.
Educational goals
Together, the preparatory session and opera outing will help participants:
- Get to know the main characters and their roles in the story
- Identify the different voice types in opera (soprano, alto, tenor, bass)
- Follow the plot and explore the settings (Seville, Almaviva’s palace, the surgeon’s office)
- Discover how music tells a story through arias, recitatives, and choruses
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Cultural Focus
A Universal Comic Opera Inspired by Beaumarchais’s play, The Barber of Seville (1816) belongs to the opera buffa (Italian comic opera) tradition. The story follows the clever barber Figaro as he helps Count Almaviva win the heart of the lovely Rosina, despite the schemes of her guardian, Doctor Bartolo.
Rossini, a Musical Genius Born in Italy in 1792 and passed away in Paris in 1868, Rossini composed some of the most popular operas of his time. The overture to The Barber of Seville, now an absolute classic, already captures the energy and themes that define the opera.
A Worldwide Success After a rocky premiere in Rome—marked by stage mishaps and a hostile audience—the opera quickly established itself as a masterpiece. Today, it remains one of the most frequently performed operas worldwide.
Fun Fact At the 1816 premiere, Rossini had to step onstage to calm a booing audience after a series of technical problems. Just days later, the opera was hailed as a triumph! |
Dates & Times : Saturday, June 6, 2026, from 1:15 to 5:15 pm
Location of the Outing: San Francisco War Memorial Opera House, 301 Van Ness Ave, San Francisco, CA 94102
Schedule for the Outing:
- Between 1:00 PM and 1:15 PM: Families drop off children in front of the War Memorial Opera House
- 1:15 PM: Children enter the opera house with EFBA staff; interactive activities before the performance
- 2:00 PM: Performance begins
- 5:15 PM: End of the opera; families pick up children
Target Audience: Children and teens ages 9 to 15 with solid proficiency in French. A placement test will be required for students not currently enrolled in EFBA’s 2025-2026 classes. Participants must be able to:
- Communicate with ease in French
- Understand the main ideas of a wide range of conversations
Only 9 spots available! Register your child today.
Prices:
- EFBA students: $49
- Standard rate: $54
