It is impossible not to perceive 1787 opera “Don Giovanni” in a more fraught way in the aftermath of the #MeToo movement and such contemporary real-life Hollywood sexual villains like comedian Bill Cosby and producer Harvey Weinstein.
But there is no need for a director today to try to somehow unduly amp up the ugly side of this opera, which opened Saturday at Lyric Opera of Chicago. Composer Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart and his famed librettist Lorenzo Da Ponte already took care of that by assuring Giovanni gets his well-deserved comeuppance at the hands of the devil.
And, indeed, in this 3½-hour take, which Lyric first presented in 2014-15 and reprised in 2019-20, stage director Robert Falls doesn’t try to impose some sociopolitical overlay onto this opera. He does shift the setting to the 1920s, but that seems to be more for the nifty visual effect than to make some kind of statement.
Instead, Falls just tells this story in a direct, highly effective way that enhances the drama and brings out its sometimes uncomfortable contradictions. He showcases the opera’s abundant humor but also tellingly places a woman in a slip, bound hand and foot, on the floor in the background during Giovanni’s final rapacious dinner.
Setting this revival apart is Christian Van Horn. The veteran bass-baritone delivered his 150th performance during Saturday evening’s season-opening production joining a rarefied list of other singers to make it to that milestone at Lyric Opera.
And he did it in impressive fashion. With an expressive, enveloping voice and easy acting style, Van Horn delivered a self-assured, utterly convincing portrayal of the complicated title character, who is at once a suave charmer and a thuggish sexual predator.
The stunning costumes by Ana Kuzmanic and sets by Walt Spangler (ably enhanced by lighting designer Duane Schuler) are a big part of the show’s appeal. Highlights of the latter include the hillside garden scene outside Giovanni’s villa with its undulating rows of grapevines and the giant theatrical drop starkly adorned with hundreds of black roses — a simple yet powerful symbolic message.
But nothing tops the spectacular coup de théâtre in the final scene, when the banquet table on which Giovanni is sprawled flips upward and he is sucked downward into hell as white smoke rises from the fiery depths.
Though this opera definitely centers on Giovanni, it is hardly a one-man show. Van Horn was backed by a superlative supporting cast who blended seamlessly in the many ensemble moments that Mozart affords them in this opera, as well as some key solo moments in the spotlight.
The composer saved the best vocal writing for the opera’s three central women, who were all victims of Giovanni yet go on to show their unbowed strengths. And each character is performed by an absolutely first-rate singer.
Making her Lyric debut (expect her back soon), Russian-Lebanese soprano Anna El-Khashem brings an appealingly natural, down-to-earth feel and vibrant, technically impeccable singing to the role of Zerlina, a humble peasant woman about to marry Masetto.
Soprano Nina Solodovnikova, also making a standout Lyric debut, handles Donna Elvira’s high-flying coloratura passagework with striking aplomb and conveys both the character’s fearless moxie and introspective doubts. With its nuanced, tonal shadings, her hushed, pained Act 2 aria in which she admits feeling pity for Giovanni despite everything is one of the production’s highlights.
None of the three shows more dramatic range than soprano Mané Galoyan as Donna Anna, who tinges her lower register with shady hues as she mourns the death of her father at the hands of Giovanni but injects a steely tone as she vows vengeance.
Bass-baritone Christopher Humbert Jr. nicely conveys the confusion and hurt of Masetto and bass David Leigh is suitably stentorian as the Commendatore, the statue that haunts Giovanni and sends him to hell.
Although it is easy to wish for a bit more vocal power from bass-baritone Tommaso Barea, he maximizes the full comedic potential of Leporello, Giovanni’s hapless, ill-treated servant. Only tenor Lawrence Brownlee seems a little off here, never fully connecting with the role of Don Ottavio, Anna’s long-suffering fiancé.
Under the impassioned leadership of music director Enrique Mazzola, the ever-reliable Lyric Opera Orchestra infuses vivacity and color into Mozart’s timeless score, with William Billingham on fortepiano and Jesse Langen on mandolin deserving special note.
“Don Giovanni” was the first opera that Lyric Opera ever presented in February 1954, and the company has reprised it 10 more times before this latest outing, and it’s not hard to understand why. As this latest presentation reconfirms, it is one of opera’s ever-compelling masterworks.
IUSTITIA.BG – Investigations 2009-2026 2026-10-13 17:16:02
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