Could've Been One Hell of an Opera

Yesterday we caught the afternoon show of ALO's Don Giovanni. Not sure what we expected, but our expectations may have been a tad too high. For those unfamiliar with the plot, here goes: Don Giovanni has loved 'em and left 'em (2,065 jilted gals in all, if you add up all the numbers in his servant Leperello's song in Act I). At the beginning of our story, he is in the midst of attacking/ravishing the daughter of a military man when he is caught. He accidentally kills the Commandatore upon discovery and runs away before anyone figures out who he is. Most of the plot revolves around this - him killing the guy and then being ultimately punished. Throw in a woman scorned (Donna Elvira), the Commandatore's daughter (Donna Anna) and her fiancee (Don Ottavio) out for revenge, a peasant couple (Zerlina and Masetto) that Giovanni attempts to break up, a bunch of love-making peasants, and there you go.

We noticed before the curtain came up that the scenery and costuming came from two different opera companies. This may be a regular practice, but during the opera there were times that the costuming really clashed with the backdrop. Okay, honestly, anything would clash with that backdrop. The reflective tile used on part of the flooring and backdrop caused a glare whenever the lights hit it a certain way, leading to us be distracted from the action on stage.

When we weren't frustrated by the lighting and shiny tile, we were quite satisifed with most the singing and acting on stage. As the jilted lover, Donna Elvira (Dana Beth Miller) really blew us away with her vocals; she and Giovanni's servant Leporello (Nathan Berg) were our favorites of the show. Don Giovanni himself (Jason Howard) had a nice chest and a decent voice. Despite his ill-fitting pants, Howard was very believable as a devilish rake. Donna Anna (Alexandra Deshorties), out for revenge for her father's death, did a fine job vocally, although we really didn't feel much chemistry between her character and fiancee Don Ottavio (John Tessier) until her "Non mi dir, bell'idol mio" aria in the graveyard. Tessier seemed to emote just fine on stage and his vocals were alright, but we were somewhat annoyed by his pronunciation. We are not experts on Italian, but his pronunication seemed very unnatural.

We admit our disappointment in the staging of the last scene. The Commandatore comes to Giovanni's house for dinner (and to send him to hell) and where the scene is supposed to be spooky, it just seemed campy. The smoke machine, the Commandatore's platform boots, the mattress flying up when Don Giovanni lands behind the stage, the choreography (or lack thereof?) of the epilogue . . . maybe the director meant it to be campy?

Nevertheless, we are glad we got to see the opera, if not just for the performances of Miller and Berg and the great music and humor of Mozart.

Mozart's Don Giovanni
Last show tonight! May 1, 2006, 7:30pm
Bass Concert Hall
Click for ticket info.

* Image (c) anna t on flickr.

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By Elizabeth S. in Arts & Entertainment on May 1, 2006 1:50 PM 0 Comments

Comments [rss]

Jooley Ann

Hm. Greek & I must've been at two different operas. I was disappointed by last night's production. To me, it was only okay. Some of the acting was quite good -- better acting I generally expect in an opera, actually.

But the singing was...fine. Just...fine. For a work that is "widely regarded as one of the greatest pieces of music ever composed" (Wikipedia), I expected to be blown away. But the singers, while sounding technically solid, lacked the passion needed to give an audience goosebumps. I don't think I was moved once, even by the "big" arias. Donna Anna got close a few times, but that was pretty much it.

Also, I disliked the set immensely. Even if you took away the reflective tiles, I wasn't into the quasi-representative images of families and buxom ladies. To me it was distracting and didn't lend itself to the light, uptempo vibe they chose for this production of Don Giovanni.

Of course, people to go operas for all sorts of different reasons. I agree that it was hilarious, and the "raunchy" bits were played extremely well. But I left feeling I'd seen a mediocre production of a great opera.

Greek

This evening's (Monday) performance was thoroughly delightful, hilarious, and raunchy. Doesn't hurt to have a sexy companion on hand, and a champagne during intermission. From the top balcony, the lighting and sets were more effective as the flattening effect of distance creates a more soulful atmosphere, and separates the viewer from perceiving production elements.

Justin Burke

In regards to the ending of Act II, I would agree that the Don's decent into hell was not as firey and dramtic as one might expect, especially with the Commandatore entering the stage in huge Elton John style lifts. I would agree with Elizabeth S.'s conjecture that the director's take on the ending was more campy than serious for two reasons:

1) Modern audiences do take the entire concept of someone going to hell for excessive randiness as seriously as Mozart's contemporaries may have.

2) The campy treatment was much more in line with the productions attention to humor in general. According to my in-laws, opera lovers both, this particular production was much fater paced, much more humourous, and much lighter than other productions they have seen.

I applaud ALO's treatment. It is way too easy to weigh something down with too much reverence.