Straight after finishing his recent run as Don Ottavio at the Vienna State Opera, Rolando Villazón dashed off to Prague to shoot a TV documentary about the premiere of Don Giovanni. The BBC are expected to air it in April or May.
Of his recent Vienna performance, the Kurier said "Villazón's a fighter who compensates for any vocal shortcomings with such charisma and commitment that he can shape even a pallid character like Don Ottavio. And the audience loves Villazón for it."
Don Giovanni - Royal Opera House, 2 February 2014
If the music's good enough, does the production matter? Judging by the thunderous applause for Kasper Holten's new Don Giovanni, the opening night audience thought not. Or perhaps they were too dazzled to notice. The spinning set, stadium-rock projections and sumptuous costumes are executed with panache and real craftsmanship. The sheer wow factor must make the folks in the posh seats feel they're getting their money's worth. This is the best-looking show at Covent Garden in decades.
Christopher Maltman's botty receives a rare public airing on 9 January when Kasper Holten's Don Giovanni-based movie Juan is screened at the Royal College of Music's Britten Theatre.
Warning for purists - this is a film based on the opera, not a film of the opera, so about half the music is cut - and it's sung in English
Tickets are £10 from the RCM website.
A preview:
Has anybody actually swallowed ENO's innuendo? Apparently it's failed to pull an audience for Don Giovanni. Already a Time Out offer peels off 50% from the price of upper circle tickets (now £25-£33). If you're not after instant gratification, more discounts are likely to come thick and hard later.
***** UPDATE***** Thanks to Richard (see comments below) for spotting that over-50s website High 50 ("Age has its benefits") has a two-for-one offer on dress circle and upper circle tickets.
Autumn de Wilde
The LA Philharmonic drafted in an all-star roster of backstage talent for their unaccustomed venture into the world of opera on Friday night. Christopher Alden directed the semi-staged Don Giovanni. The giant crumpled paper sets were created by the architect of the LA Phil's Walt Disney Concert Hall, Frank Gehry. Kate and Laura Mulleavy of Rodarte provided the fairytale-chic costumes, recruiting their catwalk cohorts Odile Gilbert (hair) and James Kaliardos (makeup) to set off their designs.
Mariusz Kwiecien took the title role, with Carmela Remigio (Donna Anna), Aga Mikolaj (Donna Elvira) and Anna Prohaska ( Zerlina) on the receiving end of the most gorgeous frocks. And of course LA's very own musical superstar, Gustavo Dudamel, was in the pit.
The production, which sets the orchestra behind the stage and the chorus at the sides, was described as "freshly illuminated" but "not without acoustical or musical compromises" by Mark Swed in the LA Times.
Loads more photos below.
Don Giovanni - Heaven, 16 April 2012
We’ve had pub opera – now what about club opera? The doors of Heaven opened last night for Don Giovanni The Opera (presumably so titled to avoid confusing regular customers of ‘The World’s Most Famous Gay Nightclub’).
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