"Don Giovanni,' reconsidered

The Danish philosopher Kierkegaard wrote that Mozart's Don Giovanni is "a work without blemish, of uninterrupted perfection." But friends of mine— musicians who were daunted by the length of the piece— complained about Don Giovanni during its recent two-week run.

How can we reconcile these contrasting opinions? Attending the AVA's production, I tried to find an answer.

If this opera is "perfect," why did Mozart cut and replace major arias for Don Ottavio and Donna Elvira? At the Prague premiere in 1787, Don Ottavio, the tenor, had difficulty with the aria "Il mio tesoro." For the opera's Vienna debut six months later, Mozart replaced that with the gentler "Dalla sua pace."

But why do many conductors (like Christofer Macatsoris) reinstate the original version? Elvira's aria, "Mi tradì quell'alma ingrata"— also added for Vienna in 1787— was cut here. That's a shame, because the aria spectacularly expresses the character's flightiness and agitation. Mozart improved the opera when he added it, and apparently he didn't give a damn if the musicians had to be paid for overtime.

If we can do without such great musical moments, what's that say about the "perfection" of the score?

Endless seduction

Consider, too, what hasn't been cut. A disproportionate amount of stage time is given to Don Giovanni's pursuit of the peasant girl Zerlina. His seduction of her goes on and on, far beyond the time spent on the ladies Anna and Elvira, not to mention Elvira's maid.

In addition to these flaws, it's remarkable that an opera of such high stature is so un-endearing. Mozart's The Marriage of Figaro warms our hearts and makes us care about the lives of the countess, Figaro, Susannah and Cherubino. None of the characters in Don Giovanni is even likeable, much less loveable.

This AVA production, conceived by director Tito Capobianco, accentuates the questionable qualities of Giovanni's victims. In action that accompanies the overture, we see that Donna Anna was an active sexual partner for Giovanni. She later explains that she mistook him for her fiancé, Don Ottavio, in the dark, but it didn't appear that way to Capobianco or to us. At the very least, Donna Anna is not the religious, virginal woman that she pretends to be.

Self-indulgent drama queen

This production also highlighted the self-indulgent drama-queen behavior of Donna Elvira, who berates the Don but keeps pursuing him. Anna's fiancé, Ottavio, is an ass, and Zerlina's husband, Masetto is an ineffectual cuckold.

The objectification of the characters is so pronounced that it must have been the intention of Mozart and Da Ponte. Their later collaboration, Cosi fan tutte, makes the point that "women are like that" (that is, fickle). Here in Don Giovanni, the collaborators seem to say: "All people are like that"“ self-centered, cruel, predatory."

Audiences want to connect with Leporello because he's a downtrodden servant, but it becomes clear that he'll behave just like his master whenever he gets the chance. And the peasant girl Zerlina, on her wedding day, will have sex with a stranger if they can escape interruption.

Many male viewers root for the Don, out of envy, no doubt. Men and women alike feel sorry for the ladies. But Mozart and Da Ponte were much more objective. They seem to have written Dirty Rotten Scoundrels, two centuries early. Not only do they show their characters' flaws, they also disparage their noblest ideals.

Exalting sadism

Their characters sing about freedom not to eliminate the tyrannical rights of nobility and deliver power to the common people (as in The Marriage of Figaro), but to advocate unbridled licentiousness. Mistreatment of servants, sadism, even murder"“ all is justified in the name of freedom.

Mozart's matchless music provides a perfect foil for this unsavory story. Here his writing is even more diverse than in Figaro or Cosi. For the ballroom scene at the end of Act I, Mozart calls for three ensembles to play separate dance music in synchronization, each piece in its respective meter. In Act II, Giovanni is seen to play the mandolin, accompanied by pizzicato strings. When the statue of the Commendatore speaks, Mozart adds three trombones to the accompaniment.

Pleasant surprise

When I attended this production at the end of its run, I hoped for a last look at AVA's graduating seniors Michelle Johnson and Taylor Stayton, as Anna and Ottavio. By miscalculation, I wound up seeing newcomers in many of the roles instead.

As Donna Anna, the young Russian soprano Alexandra Maximova was electrifying. She is an attractive brunette with a full-bodied, well-placed dramatic voice. As Donna Elvira, the Canadian Chloé Moore perfectly captured the breathless instability of a troubled woman.

Chrystal E. Williams reinforced the good impression she made in the Concert Operetta Theater's recent double bill. In a departure from the light highness of most Zerlinas, Williams displayed her rich mezzo voice. And as the Don, Scott Conner was a vivid actor with a solid bass voice. He just completed his second year at AVA, while the three women are first-year resident artists. Seeing them was gratifying and bodes well for the future.