I don't consider this 1991 Don Giovanni the best I've seen, that's still the 1979 Losey film and the 1987 performance with Ramey in the title role and Karajan conducting. The 1990 Met and 2001 performances are also worth looking out for. However it is still very good, and better than the 1977 Glyndebourne production and the 2006 production. Albeit with one problem, the Commendatore scene. This scene is one of my favourite scenes of any Mozart opera and one of the most terrifying scenes in opera history if done brilliantly.
I find the Commendatore scene the most effective when you see the statue move, you see fire on the stage and you see Don Giovanni dragged to hell by furies. However, you don't see any of this this here, while not as badly done as the 2006 production with Thomas Hampson, it is very awkwardly staged complete with the cheesy effects, almost like something had gone badly wrong in the performance and they were trying to cover it up but poorly, and you get a bad taste in the mouth yet none of the terror and nail-biting suspense you often get.
Other than this, I enjoyed this Don Giovanni. It is a very traditional-looking production, and all the better for it. The costume and set design do look great, at first I did find Giovanni's wig rather strange but I got used to it. The camera work is always focused and interesting, and the picture quality has a certain sharpness to it. The sound is muffled at times, but mostly it was serviceable.
Don Giovanni is Mozart's darkest and most complex score yet also one of his best. The power and firmness of the orchestration really comes through here, and James Conlon conducts with finesse. The production has great performances generally. I was most impressed with Andrea Rost's adorable Zerlina and Ferrucio Furlanetto's bumbling and often hilarious Leoprello, and while he is older than he was in the La Scala performance and perhaps lacking the bravado that Ramey and Raimondi bring to the most vivid titular character of any of Mozart's operas, Thomas Allen is nonetheless dramatically and vocally commanding.
Carol Vaness apart from the odd harsh tone is excellent as the spiteful Elvira and does very well providing the opera's heart. The Commendatore's, courtesy of Matthias Holle voice is so resonant and his presence sent shivers down my spine. Carolyn James sings beautifully as Donna Anna, and while she does have times where she is a tad stiff she manages to bring out the characters' fiery side as well as a sympathetic one. Reinhord Dorn's Massetto is also solid as rocks.
Only Kjell Magnus Sandve's Ottavio disappoints, the role is quite thankless anyway, but here I found despite the handsome looks the acting staid, the voice not always beautiful and the runs not always technically assured especially the very difficult long one during Il Mio Tesoro. Overall though, it is a very solid performance that is let down only by a poorly staged Commendatore scene and a weak Ottavio. 8/10 Bethany Cox
I find the Commendatore scene the most effective when you see the statue move, you see fire on the stage and you see Don Giovanni dragged to hell by furies. However, you don't see any of this this here, while not as badly done as the 2006 production with Thomas Hampson, it is very awkwardly staged complete with the cheesy effects, almost like something had gone badly wrong in the performance and they were trying to cover it up but poorly, and you get a bad taste in the mouth yet none of the terror and nail-biting suspense you often get.
Other than this, I enjoyed this Don Giovanni. It is a very traditional-looking production, and all the better for it. The costume and set design do look great, at first I did find Giovanni's wig rather strange but I got used to it. The camera work is always focused and interesting, and the picture quality has a certain sharpness to it. The sound is muffled at times, but mostly it was serviceable.
Don Giovanni is Mozart's darkest and most complex score yet also one of his best. The power and firmness of the orchestration really comes through here, and James Conlon conducts with finesse. The production has great performances generally. I was most impressed with Andrea Rost's adorable Zerlina and Ferrucio Furlanetto's bumbling and often hilarious Leoprello, and while he is older than he was in the La Scala performance and perhaps lacking the bravado that Ramey and Raimondi bring to the most vivid titular character of any of Mozart's operas, Thomas Allen is nonetheless dramatically and vocally commanding.
Carol Vaness apart from the odd harsh tone is excellent as the spiteful Elvira and does very well providing the opera's heart. The Commendatore's, courtesy of Matthias Holle voice is so resonant and his presence sent shivers down my spine. Carolyn James sings beautifully as Donna Anna, and while she does have times where she is a tad stiff she manages to bring out the characters' fiery side as well as a sympathetic one. Reinhord Dorn's Massetto is also solid as rocks.
Only Kjell Magnus Sandve's Ottavio disappoints, the role is quite thankless anyway, but here I found despite the handsome looks the acting staid, the voice not always beautiful and the runs not always technically assured especially the very difficult long one during Il Mio Tesoro. Overall though, it is a very solid performance that is let down only by a poorly staged Commendatore scene and a weak Ottavio. 8/10 Bethany Cox
