"Don GioVANni! Is coming to KILL me!"

[muckefuck]

This fall's opera season opened with three modest dissappointments.

The first was dinner at the Berghoff. Despite their attempts to get more post-nouvelle, they're still best when they stick to their full-fats-ahead damn-the-cholesterol traditional standards. We've eaten lots of places in the Loop, but we always fall back on them at least a couple times each season for their combination of location, service, economy, and Gemütlichkeit. This makes it especially distressing when they slip up, as they did when they served me "German fries" that had been sitting until they grew lukewarm and leathery on the outside. The schnitzel "ala [sic] Holstein" was my own fault--was wissen Fischköpfe vom Schnitzel, gel? And what is wrong with Northerners that they have to spoil perfectly tasty food with nasty little capers? (Nuphy felt similarly about the anchovy, but I don't consider that fatal, just inappropriate; what, no herring in the kitchen?)

The second was that we didn't have box seats. Nuphy confirmed that we did talk about getting them for this performance, but if it was up to him to take care of that, then he dropped the ball. No big. After all, we have 'em for the Ring, when it really counts. (Incidentally, bunj, we did get Cycle 3. See you at the show!)

And actually, maybe that wasn't so bad after all, since the bigger disappointment was the opera. I don't mean that it was bad--Kruzitürken, how could it be with that composer, that librettists, that orchestra, and that cast? But I had expected something on a par with the knockout Nozze di Figaro of a couple years back, which remains the most impressive opera performance I was lucky enough to attend. But, as Nuphy explained in intermission, Don Giovanni was traditionally considered the strongest of the three Da Ponte/Mozart collaborations when it's actually the most staid, most slapdash, and weakest. He thinks the consensus is shifting to Così fan tutte, which audiences didn't know what to make of in Mozart's day, but which is much more in line with modern sensibilities than a piece that starts out with an attempted rape and then tried to morph into a light comedy.

Quick notes on the production: Like I said, great cast. D'Arcangelo isn't as strong a singer as I'd like, but he certain brings a lot of verve to Leporello. Bayrakdarian, who nearly wrecked last year's production of Nozze, did better than I'd feared. Her entrance was weak and off the beat, but she got better by the end. She was no match for Graham, however, and certainly not Mattila, whose Donna Anna almost stole the show. We were also blessed with a surprisingly good Don Ottavio and a truly booming basso for the Commendatore. He managed to project some real menace in one of the cheesiest undead characters this side of the King's Ghost. It goes without saying that Bryn can do no wrong, but I confess that hearing the tune to "Non piu 'ndrai" in the Second Act made me wish to god we were singing Figaro again instead of Don Giovanni. At least it's a massive improvement over last year's Sweeney Todd. What a waste of talent that was!

The set decoration was minimal, which Nuphy disliked but I didn't mind--except, of course, when it made the blocking senseless. For instance, in the scene where Leporello has just praised his master's eyesight but the latter proves incapable of recognising an ex-lover in broad daylight from twenty yards across an entirely featureless stage. Then there's the murder of the Commendatore, who's framed in a square of light from the open door, yet everyone has to run around the stage for a minute before figuring out what's befallen him. So, overall, not nearly as bad as the notorious Meistersinger set (especially in terms of looking cheap), but bringing about some of the same kind of idiocy.

So what didn't I like? Although there were some surprising elements to the music (Nuphy leaned over during the Statue's appearance to point out "Twelve-tone row!"), overall it could've passed for Rossini. I'm not slaggin' the man, I'm just saying that I expect more from Amadeus than just sprightly and hummable. Also, as I said, the mix of comedy and tragedy didn't work for me. After someone's been presented as a vicious rapist and a cold-blooded murderer, it's tough to accept him as an entertaining rogue. (The comedic elements were played very broadly.) All claims about Don Juan's seductive powers take on an unsettling edge when he's depicted as relying as much on brute strength as anything else.

Comments

[off_coloratura]

Silvestrelli (the Commendatore) is also our Fasolt, and an adorable one as well. What a voice on that boy. After having seen him in so many old-man roles (I believe he was Dr. Bartolo in last year's Figaro), I have been surprised seeing him backstage at Rheingold - he's actually much younger than the roles he plays. He's 38.

[muckefuck.livejournal.com]

Yeah, he was Bartolo. Nuphy thought he might be playing a giant in the upcoming Ring. How are you involved that hullabaloo?

[off_coloratura]

I'm Woglinde and the Woodbird.

[muckefuck.livejournal.com]

GO YOU! One of bunj's co-workers is a bungee-Rhinemaiden; you could be her voice! She's been telling him amusing stories about Bryjak.

(On second thought, perhaps I should've called it a "Tohuwabohu" instead of a "hullabaloo.)

[bunj.livejournal.com]

No, my coworker, Beth, is playing Flosshilde. Still, it's a small world. Most of Beth's stories revolve around Oleg's lack of english and the choreographer shouting "Flutter!"

Myself, I'm torn by the idea of separate singing and dancing Rhinemaidens. I feel the person singing the role should get some face time, but I understand the importance of spectacle. After all, who wants to return to the days of standing and singing, with no blocking whatsoever?

[off_coloratura]

We were all really disappointed when we found out we wouldn't be on the bungees, but looking at what they do, holy cow. I'd never be able to to what they're doing on the bungees and still sing this opera, let alone blend with the other Rheinmaidens. When they come offstage they are DRENCHED in sweat and breathing really hard, and these are ATHLETES. I'd never survive.

At least in Goetterdaemmerung we do get some face time.

And someone not knowing much English is pretty standard, especially in the bigger houses. I remember in Lucia, the director would switch constantly between Italian (the language of the opera), French (the Lucia), Spanish (the director and the Edgardo) and English (everyone else), without so much as a blink.

[welcomerain.livejournal.com]

I clutch my precious love of Don Giovanni to my chest and look at you with big sad Puss N' Boots eyes.

[muckefuck.livejournal.com]

Don't get me wrong: The worst Mozart kicks the butt of most composer's top output with a pointy iron boot. But that's why I set the bar so high. Fundamentally, DG's real flaw for me was Not Being Figaro.

[nitouche.livejournal.com]

Oooh, but Isabel Bayrakdarian is gorgeous, Armenian-Canadian, and is a former engineer from UofT (so she has a day job to go back to if necessary) -- what's not to like? Mind you, I've only heard recordings, so it could well be she's not so great on stage. Have you heard her cd of Armenian sacred music?

[muckefuck.livejournal.com]

I haven't, but I wouldn't be the least bit surprised if her studio recordings were better. Problems with rising above a booming orchestra can easily be eliminated with a mixing board and problems with consistency (like that little finding-the-beat problem I mentioned) benefit enormously from the multiple takes. There's not much you can do with an ugly voice, but I don't have any complaints about how her voice sounds, just how she uses it.

That's why I have such immense respect for opera singers. There are no mikes. There are no do-overs. It's your naked voice, in whatever state it is that night, on display for a few hundred souls. Plenty of people can produce a perfectly pleasant tone; the challenge is getting everything else right, too.

Okay, now that I've finally seen it

[bunj.livejournal.com]

I agree with you on most of your points. I was also disappointed in the sets, and you did have some stupid blocking because of them (Don Ottavio steps over the Commendatore's body when he enters, and then 'discovers' it a few seconds later). I guess with nine scene changes, flexibility is important, but it's not that difficult to add some furnishings to make things more realistic.

In general, I think the stage direction (including the blocking) was my greatest disappointment. It's like the director really wanted to be directing Figaro. In my opinion, Don Giovanni is a tragedy, but much of the direction (especially Leperello) was played too broad. The banquet scene is quite powerful, but in the next scene Leperello is jumping up and down and playing to the audience again. You'd think seeing his master dragged to Hell would quiet him down a little. Also, we had the audience laughing at Donna Elvira in the final scene. Sure, Giovanni finds her a bore and ridicules her because of her openness and honesty, but I don't think (especially at that point) the audience should be agreeing with him. I think the direction which played up the comedic elements went a long way toward creating the unsettling mix of the comedic and the tragic you're complaining about. The whole thing should be played much more tragic.

I don't think we're ever supposed to see Giovanni as an entertaining rogue. Bryn has a blurb in the stagebill about Giovanni failing from the beginning. Despite his past, he can't manage to seduce (or even rape) anyone during the play. His gifts are wanning, if they were ever as great as he pretends to begin with. He flatters women, and if that doesn't work (or takes to long) he brutalizes them. I noticed that Mozart/Da Ponte spend a lot of time exploring how Giovanni's actions affect the couples in the play (Ottavio/Anna and Maselo/Zerlina). They don't have to do that to advance the plot, but it shows how couples who truly love each other deal with obstacles. For me, that was sweet and honest, and a great part of the opera.

I agree the music isn't all that (though I thought the banquet scene rightfully kicked ass), but I think the plot is more complex, and the themes explored richer, than in Figaro.

Now, I just need to see Cosi fan tutti.