CONTEXT is everything. Beaumarchais set La folle journée – the inspiration for Da Ponte’s libretto – three leagues from Seville. Jo Davies’s new production locates the Almaviva pile somewhere much more Ruritanian.

Here a brilliantined Count capers around in jodhpurs or frock coat like a demented hyena. Curzio, now a priest, swings the censer at the double wedding, sporting a full Orthodox beard and circular hat. The feudal chorus unveils a ‘We Love the Count’ banner. Our happy-go-lucky Figaro radiates bonhomie, taking nobody seriously. As an energetic post-pantomime romp, it is all good fun. But as an exercise in satire, it does not attempt to convince.

Musically things are different. Alexander Shelley makes a decisive operatic debut in Leeds, firm in the overture but spacious in the Countess’s arias. The orchestra believes in him every step of the way. Pit and stage are tautly yoked. The recitatives are spiced by Annette Saunders’s fortepiano, and diction, in the newly-tweaked Jeremy Sams paraphrase/translation, is notably clean.

Richard Burkhard is an entertaining Figaro, a schoolboy schemer rather than an arch manipulator, at least until the darker devilry of the last act. His Susanna is the delightfully lithe Silvia Moi, whose light soprano eventually broadens into something pleasingly fuller than your average soubrette’s. Quirijn de Lang’s chinless wonder of an Almaviva is sharply reminiscent of Basil Fawlty, stiff with self-parody. But he boasts a more than useful baritone.

As his Countess, Ana Maria Labin takes time to tug at the heartstrings. After a brittle Porgi, amor she shows much more backbone in Dove sono, while also tending to slide prematurely off higher notes. These arias are the emotional heart of the work and need some gingering up.

She and Helen Sherman’s tousle-headed Cherubino have an engaging relationship that hints at something deeper. Sherman’s sense of humour and strong mezzo make her a natural in the role. Henry Waddington’s starchy Bartolo, Gaynor Keeble’s lustful Marcellina, Joseph Shovelton’s oily Basilio, and Jeremy Peaker’s Barnsley-accented Antonio all add zest to the comedy.

Davies has a keen eye for wit and groups her singers cleverly. But Leslie Travers’s shabby chic sets, revolving in self-consciously démodé style, add to the unreality, as do Gabrielle Dalton’s multi-era costumes. So context is impossible to pin down. Escapism wins the day.

Further Leeds performances on January 30, February 5, 11, 17, 21 & 27, then on tour; box office, operanorth.co.uk