Following the revival of the Wiener Staatsoper’s “Il Barbiere di Siviglia” on Feb. 14, the company was forced to switch Herbert Fritsch’s production to the older Günther Rennert production on Feb. 18, 2025.

According to reports, Fritsch’s production had a foul-smelling breakdown and forced audience members to leave the hall. As a result, the Wiener Staatsoper was forced to change the production to a 1966 one that the Wiener Staatsoper had used for many years.

Tenor Jack Swanson, who is performing in the February run, took to  Instagram and confirmed that the Fritsch production was “disintegrating and smelling badly.”

The final performance of the February run will be on Feb. 21, 2025, and will star Maria Kateva, Jack Swanson, and Paolo Bordogna.

Fristch’s production premiered at the Wiener Staatsoper in 2021 with Juan Diego Florez and Etienne Dupuis and is scheduled to return in June With Egard Rocha leading the cast.

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