Customer Reviews

Mozart - Don Giovanni

5 star:		(2)
4 star:		(2)
3 star:		(2)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(1)

 

 

I thought the whole was less than the sum of its parts in this Zurich Opera production. The individual performances are fine indeed, but the production lacks the sustained tension that makes this opera such a masterpiece - sustained tension that grips us from that first dissonant chord of the overture and doesn't let go until Giovanni descends into Hell. The lack of tension is mostly due to the slow pace of the orchestra in many of the opera's most dramatic moments. That slowness also takes the sparkle out of the comedic moments in the opera. (For example, the "Catalogue aria" seems to go on forever.)

Simon Keenlyside does a fine job as Don Giovanni. He has flawless technique as a singer and as an actor. Every note and every action is executed with clear intention. His "Deh, vieni alla finestra" is seductive and mesmerizing. My only criticism is that Keenlyside is too much of an ensemble player (in this regard, I respectfully disagree with the reviewer who praised him for this). His Giovanni is not a larger-than-life presence and is bit too casual in manner (the reviewer who invoked Sinatra's "rat pack' seemed spot-on to me). This Giovanni just doesn't dominate the opera and this is another reason why it lacks the sustained tension it should have.

As Leporello, Anton Scharinger has a wonderfully deep baritone voice. It blends beautifully with Keenlyside's lighter baritone. Scharinger's acting is one of the highlights of the production. It's clear that at times he fancies himself to be the real Don!

I was pleasantly surprised by Eva Mei as Donna Anna. I've never heard her sing with such power and flexibility. Her performance of the extremely difficult "Or sai chi l'onore" is stunning. Malin Hartelius does a fine job as Donna Elvira. She sings with great expressiveness and pathos. You can feel how she is simultaneously drawn to and repelled by Giovanni (as is Leporello...as are we).

As he is on the recent Salzburg DVD of "Don Giovanni" (which I can't recommend - see my review if you're interested), the Polish tenor Piotr Beczala is outstanding as Don Ottavio. It's nice to hear a baritonal tenor in this role for a change. He gives a full-bodied, yet moving rendition of "Dalla sua pace" and navigates the difficult runs and sustained notes of "Il mio tesoro" with great skill and beauty. The latter aria is a highlight of Act II. For a breathtaking four minutes, Beczala simply takes over the opera! Martina Jankova plays Zerlina with real spunk and has a lively soprano voice. As Masetto, Reinhard Mayr shows the requisite anger and jealousy. And Alfred Muff's bass makes your hair stand on end when, as the Commendatore, he takes center stage in Act II. In short, there's not a weak player in the cast.

Finally, I'm generally not a fan of the European fad of staging 18th and 19th Century operas in 20th Century settings, but it works okay (even the dark glasses standing in for masks in the heavenly "Trio of the Masks"). The action appears to be set in a posh mid-1900's nightclub or lounge and could be anywhere in Europe or even the U.S. (Las Vegas comes to mind). The concept works because the modernizing is mostly confined to the costumes and sets. As a result, we are thankfully spared the self-conscious symbolism injected into opera by so many contemporary European directors -- be it people stuck to walls or extra characters thrown in as alter egos. I've seen both in recent productions, as if the message (or purposeful ambiguity of message) in Mozart's operas doesn't stand on its own. The only scene in which the updated setting doesn't work is the ensemble entrance of Zerlina and Masetto. This is so clearly a peasant song and dance piece that it doesn't work in this ritzy setting.

There are many fine productions of this opera on DVD. I recommend this one, with the reservations expressed above. My personal favorite remains another Zurich Opera production: 2001, Nikolaus Harnoncourt conducting, featuring Rodney Gilfry and Cecilia Bartoli.

Update of November 2011: Since I wrote the following review Keenlelyside has played the Don in a much superior production at Covent Garden and has met his match in Gerald Finley at Glyndebourne. I recommend the DVD/Blue Ray releases of those productions above the one from Zurich. Keenleyside's voice is aging more quickly than Finley's, which Keenleyside himself foresaw would be the case when he made a CD of operatic arias about a decade ago for which he wrote the booklet notes.

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Simon Keenlyside is today's Don of Dons in my book, matched only by Gerald Finley, and he does indeed sing and act the role to perfection in this carefully thought through yet passionate production from Zurich. But Keenlyside does not steal the show - he's too fine an artist to play that game. The other members of the cast sing and act convincingly, working together with Keenlyside, suggesting the mutual respect and timing of a repertory cast the members of which know one another well. The musical direction and orchestral playing realize all of the power and delicacy and the cruelty and comedy of Mozart's score.

The set design is simple in concept yet rich in color, texture, and lighting, making effective use of red, black, gold and white fabrics of various sorts in the costuming, the stage furniture, or the subtly moving curtains that not only provide for a set change but also contribute to the shifting moods of the drama. The use of reflecting mirrors and rear projection adds to the sense that the Don's world is founded upon deception - deception of others and of himself.

The director's approach honors Mozart and Da Ponte and is definitely not yet another example of self-consciously "modern" Euro-trash. The time and place is not 18th century Spain but an unspecified period in the last hundred years or more. Is it London in the 1920s? Or New York City in the 1950s? Or Berlin in the 1990s? Paris just before World War I? There is even a passing aura of Vienna in the late 19th century. Is the setting the lobby of a grand hotel? Or is it an exclusive night club? The opera takes place in no time, all time, and our time. The scene of the action is an interior public space in which all kinds of behavior takes place, be it formal or intimate, violent or funny, elegant or decadent. It is the society which has created the Don and in which the Don acts to destroy or damage the lives of others. We see ourselves and our own world on this stage.

I highly recommend this DVD. There are other outstanding, insightful productions of Don Giovanni also available on DVD, such as Maazel/Raimondi, Smith/Perry, Harnoncourt/Gilfry, and most recently Harding/Mattei, and I wouldn't be without any of them. Each offers me a different experience of perhaps the most difficult of all of Mozart's operas to realize on the stage. On the other hand, there are the multiple challenges presented by The Magic Flute! Which leads us back to Simon Keenlyside, in this case his incomprable interpretations of the role of Papageno. Don Giovanni, Leporello, Papageno, Figaro, the Count: Keenlyside has all of these roles mastered, in part because he is wise enough never to sing any of them quite the same way from one production to the next.

Don't be put off by the cover photo, there is not that much blood on display in this production. What dominates is an elegant 1930s look with what appears to be high quality, for the most part, "off the shelf" costumes.

There is a fair amount of dressing and undressing, so underware is displayed, yet there is no nudity. Unlike the Salzburg 2006 (M22) production the underware is not as revealing and there is far less of it. Zurich has obtained a good balance between elegant and earthy with this production.

Best of all is the Elvira of Malin Hartelius which is true to the libretto. She is portrayed as a deeply hurt woman who is not insane, but very conflicted. Hartelius uses her considerable interpretive skills in such a way that I did not find her voice too small for the role.

Keenlyside is not as dramatic a Don as Siepi was in 1954, but his singing is more accurate. He is more a Sinatra "rat pack" type of Don acting wise. He fits into the 1930 concept very well.

I expected to be very disappointed by Eva Mei as Donna Anna, but she did fairly well. Lack of personality is the main problem.

Everyone else is very good, and they work well together.

Welser-Moest deserves special credit for exceptional conducting which allows the singers to sing without screaming, yet not losing the drama in the process. Sound engineering (at least on the LPCM track) is the best I have heard yet.

Like a previous reviewer, I bought this simply to see Simon Keenlyside as the Don. I have no quibbles with any of the singers (although Donna Anna is a bit plastic), nor with the New Look costumes, or even with the set. At least you can see what is going on. However, as another reviewer said, this production lacks dramatic tension. And some of the action is just silly. Why, when Don Ottavio sings the wonderfully beautiful Dalla sua pace, about his love of and concern for Donna Anna, is he surrounded by disrobing women? And why does he sing Il me tesoro as if it is Donna Elvira he commending to Masetto's and Zerlina's care? And the Catalogue Aria is just tedious. Never mind, it's all right to watch from another room.

Its pretty hard to take this production seriously as most of the dancers are making rock and roll movements to Mozart's music. Extras show up an odd times for no apparent reason except to remove their clothing. One is fascinated to see what irrelevant and distracting ideas the director will come up with next. Keenleyside is a brilliant singing actor and he is a joy to watch but he is a lyric baritone and does not really have the weight of voice for Don Giovanni. His concept really belongs in a Fellini film rather than a Mozart opera. But then again that might be the director's idea. Aside from Hartilius none of the singers rises above routine in my view which probably justifies having as much as possible on the visual side to distract from the musical side of the performance. The conductor certainly makes some unusual choices for his tempos. The result is somewhat lacking in energy. This DVD can never be anybody's first choice for this work. Save it for April 1st or maybe a New Year's Eve joke.

Perhaps the most glorious opera music ever written violated by the worst distortions of plot and meaning ever inflicted by a director. Louche, tasteless, barbaric -- I am challenged to find words for this production that reduces Mozart's masterpiece to a cacophony of meaningless bits. There is so much distraction and ugliness on stage that even Mozart's music barely makes it through. PS: There is a mediocre cast and a uni-set that is pathetic.

This is a superb production of "Don Giovanni" -- the only reason I've given it four instead of five stars is that the DVD has none of the extras opera fans have come to expect from a new production. Couldn't they have at least taken a portable digital camera backstage for a few interviews? Since this is such a thought-provoking production, it would have been interesting to hear what the director, designers, and performers had to say.

In a nutshell: Comedy + cruelty = Disturbing beauty, with the accent on beauty. I generally do not like "modern" productions of Mozart operas, but this one is so visually arresting -- especially the mirrored set and the use of the dancers -- and the performances -- led by Simon Keenlyside, the finest Don of his generation -- so good that such an approach makes one rethink this Mozart/Da Ponte masterpiece.

This is especially the case in the Don Giovanni/Leoporello relationship. It's by turns very funny and very scary, and Leoporello's combination of fascination and repugnance mirrors (sometimes literally) that of the women who are the Don's willing victims, and of us, the audience.

For me the sole reason for buying this production of DG was Keenlyside who surely owns the role. Initially I had dithered because I knew of the work of Sven Eric Bechtolf, his disfigued Rosenkavalier and bizarre Pelleas both from Zurich Opera, owning fortunately only the Pelleas. But EMI provided a price that was amazingly low and I thought, "might as well," and what are the chances that SK would be in another DG on DVD.

In this you will not be let down vocally and dramatically. He embodies all the requisite elements for a powerful Don: voice, acting ability, physical agility,looks and a sense of how the music should go. Alas it is pretty much of a one man show although the Polish tenor, Beczala is excellent the role as conceived lacks any dramatic force, yielding always to Donna Anna. Which brings me to my next negative, Eva Mei. Here is an Italian soprano who frequently spends her time in the "ina" roles. Here she is attempting the second most heroic Mozart soprano role (she sings Konstanze in an Italian production of Abduction so I guess it is a tossup which is harder)with a voice that is two or three sizes too small, glassy and lacking in color. At best she could make an adequate Zerlina, a stretch Elvira, but ultimately I can only applaud her desire to attempt roles outside her usual fach, but wonder why conductors, directors, etc., would opt for her. The Elvira is a Swedish soprano Malins Hartelius who is a delightful Pamina on another Zurich production of Flute. Alas I have lived a lifetime with the Elvira of Schwarzkopf so to triumph in this role it takes a great deal. In time perhaps, but here....

The production is as inane as I had suspected; I foolishly bought the Beixto production from Barcelona. Of the two it is far worse because the singing for the most part lacks distinction of any sort, the stage is in near darkness most of the time, the Ottavio is overparted, the only two singers who can deliver the goods are the Leporello (an Asian whose name I can't remember) and a wonderful Elvia, Veronica Gens who is denied the Mi tradi since we are in the land of the Prague version. In truth both productions don't make much sense dramatically, but Herr Bechtolf at least lights his productions so his silly conceits are visible.

Musically the producion is in good hands, but on two occasions Welser Most opts for slow tempos, most notably in the Catalogue Aria. These would not be deal breakers but there are other reasons most people will not respond to this DVD, some of which I have outlined above. But for Keenlyside, I will endure them.