OPERA / The Barber of Seville - Welsh National Opera

Giles Havergal's stylish production of The Barber of Seville returned to Welsh National Opera on Saturday - welcome assurance that it is still possible to edify and to entertain without doing violence to a hackneyed work.

The revival is as fresh as ever. Continuity is supplied by Neill Archer's posturing, tireless Almaviva (complete with his perhaps superfluous 'Cessa di piu resistere') and by Andrew Shore's drily comic Doctor Bartolo, a rare case of buffo Rossini sung with pace and musical humour in English (in Robert David MacDonald's clever, macaronic translation).

But there are also important newcomers. Simon Keenlyside's Figaro will strike some as vocally lightweight (curiously both he and Archer sing Debussy's Pelleas), but he is alert, personable, and never overplays. 'Largo al factotum' was a triumph of mind over matter, perhaps, but for the rest this is a sharp, well-focused reading.

The Australian mezzo-soprano Fiona Janes makes a strong impression. Like all good Rosinas, she sparkles and spits; unlike many, she can also sing the music - and with good colour in every register. Her 'Contro un cor', partly Italian and very amusingly staged, was one of the evening's highlights.

Gareth Jones conducts, below full speed but with spirit. Russell Craig's brilliant, open-plan set is still alone worth the ticket price.

Also 9 Oct, New Theatre, Cardiff (0222 394844) and on tour