Don Giovanni

Don’t tell anyone that I ate a scone in the back of the Power Center- I know its not allowed. I grabbed one as I was leaving class last Monday evening, bypassing dinner, and rushing to a dress rehearsal of the opera ‘Don Giovanni.’ I am in a Romance Languages seminar called ‘Don Juan’ and my professor scored us special access to the final run through and I was so glad she did because I was out of town for the actual performance. I have never witnessed a dress rehearsal of such an extravagant production. It was very interesting to watch such a dramatic performance in such a small and relaxed audience.

I know nothing about opera and have never been to one before, but because of this course I am very familiar with the story of Don Giovanni. I have read multiple versions on French, Spanish, Italian, and English, seen clips of several theatrical renditions and films, and now the opera. So I certainly understood what was happening on onstage. But even if I hadn’t studied the tale beforehand,  I think it would have been very easy to follow along for several reasons.

First of all, the Italian lyrics, written by DaPonte, were translated by director/professor Robert Swedberg into sur-titles that flashed above the stage throughout the show. Second, the actors were excellent in their facial expressions. I may not have understood their language but the cadence of their voices and the gestures of their bodies made very transparent renderings of emotion. And lastly, the story is folkloric and archetypal. It may be a negative stereotype of a man- a libertine who philanders just a little too much- but it is a caricature that everyone can recognize and laugh both with and at.

Before the opera, Robert Swedberg visited our class to discuss his process of translation to the stage. One key comment he made that liberated me to enjoy the production was this: “In opera, you must suspend your disbelief.” It takes a leap of faith to dive in swim around with the performers, but once you release realistic expectations it is very fun and free. In real life, these people would not be singing to each other spectacularly, nor would they be reciting the same thing over and over again for twenty minutes without interruption. They would not be gesturing like puppets or disguising their identities without question or coming back from the dead to belt one last aria. After three hours of engaging in the colorful, brightly lit story, I learned that in this particular kind of theater the audience must not resist the escape into fantasy if they want to  enjoy the experience.

In debriefing the performance in class today, my classmates expressed mixed reactions. On the one hand, the singing was impressive, extravagant, and almost super human. The acting was dynamic and the story came alive on stage in certain ways that it cannot on paper. On the other hand, some translations seemed confounded. For example, it was unclear that the story was set in New Orleans and exhibited no indication of this outside the explanation in the program. That detail seemed to be confusing. But then again, I suppose you are bound to find at least some disagreement with the production among a class of students learning every detail about this particular tale.

The most contested issue among the audience I shared the opera with was that at the end Don Giovanni is dragged to Hell by demonic, sexy women dressed in body suits that made them appear unmistakably nude. Huh?! In other versions, a masculine, God-like/King-like figure has the final say on Don Giovanni’s damnation. Robert Swedberg explained that this direction is a way of circumnavigating mechanics of the staging (there is no trap door that could appear to lower Don Giovanni into Hell). In this opera version, it is the women who seem to be seeking the long-awaited revenge. This alteration changes the tone and the message of the story greatly! Is Don Giovanni being punished for his treatment specifically of women or toward societal standards as a whole, including men?

Ladies? Gentlemen? What do we think?

Next time a U of M venue puts on an opera, I highly recommend attending! It’s not something I ever imagined myself being fond of but I was very entertained and impressed by the art form. And if you want to learn more about the Don Juan story, my suggestion is to start with Johnny Depp.