CONDUCTOR'S NOTE​

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Mozart’s opera the ‘Dissolute punished or Don Giovanni’, based on the ubiquitous Don Juan story, was composed over several short months in Vienna and premiered in Prague in 1787. It was commissioned by the National Theatre of Bohemia following on from Mozart’s earlier success with his opera Le nozze di Figaro. A revised version incorporating musical and dramatic changes suited to a new cast premiered in Vienna a year later. This production of Don Giovanni is based on the revised Vienna version.

Don Giovanni is subtitled Dramma giocoso or ‘cheerful play’, however Lorenzo da Ponte’s libretto about the debauched libertine revels in playful juxtapositions of both comedy and tragedy. These sudden shifts in musical and dramatic tension pose considerable challenges for singers, challenges made all the greater in our production by the exposed traverse staging. Given all the musical and dramatic complexities of this great opera it is even more remarkable that for some of our cast members this production marks their first leading role or very first opera performance.