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It’s tempting to assume that a version of Don Giovanni that highlights the strength of its female characters would require some major updates.
Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart’s beloved opera about a lecherous nobleman who wrongs women and men alike was first performed in 1787 when the model for strong females differed greatly from today’s. But it turns out Mozart and librettist Lorenzo Da Ponte created potent female characters from the get-go. There is no need for a modern, feminist reboot of the opera, it’s all there in the original text.
“The way that Mozart wrote these women, they are very strong and powerful,” says director Anna Theodosakis, who is making her Calgary Opera debut with Don Giovanni. “For some reason, sometimes that goes by the wayside in traditional productions. So I was really keen to bring out more of their strength, build the relationships between the women themselves, and just assure that they as survivors have a lot of agency and that both the singers and the characters feel empowered.”
So, Theodosakis, who previously directed an online pandemic version of Don Giovanni in 2020, did not have to fundamentally change anything for this production. No scenes have been added to emphasize the shift in focus from Giovanni to the women who survive him. Theodosakis and conductor Jonathan Brandani, who is also Calgary Opera’s artistic director, wanted the production to be under three hours, so cuts had to be made. It was just a matter of what to cut.
“Jonathan and I were very conscious to make sure we weren’t cutting things away from the female characters, so leaving them more intact so they would have more character development, which sometimes with cuts is something we lose,” she says. “So that was important when cutting the material. Otherwise, I’m relying a lot on the staging and the stage actions to show how strong they fight, to also show how they help each other in different scenes and there are a couple of incidences where normally some of the women wouldn’t be together in a scene but I have put them together to help each other build that sense of community.”
Don Giovanni is based on the story of Don Juan, a dashing anti-hero who victimizes women. By the 18th century, the character was already well-known across Europe.
In the Opera and Context section of Calgary Opera’s website, the company acknowledges that the motivations of the three female characters – Donna Anna, Donna Elvira and Zerlina – have “historically been interpreted problematically. Their suffering and trauma have often been downplayed, their means of resistance overlooked or ridiculed.”
Still, while the opera balances some intense elements – assault, abuse, murder, deception – with comedy, the original certainly didn’t downplay Giovanni’s comeuppance. The original Italian title wasIl dissoluto punito, ossia il Don Giovanni, which translates into The Rake Punished, or Don Giovanni. And, yes – spoiler alert – the famous scene when Giovanni is literally dragged to hell will be brought to spectacular life at the Jubilee Auditorium when the opera premieres on Nov. 2.
Phillip Addis, who played Giovanni in the online Brott Opera production that Theodosakis directed, will be joined by Italian bass-baritone Guido Loconsolo as the nobleman’s servant Leporello; Calgary-born soprano Aviva Fortunata plays Donna Elvira, a noblewoman whose social status is compromised after being seduced by Giovanni; soprano Christina Thanisch-Smith, who is a member of Calgary Opera’s McPhee Artist Development program, plays the peasant newlywed Zerlina who is at risk of being seduced by Giovanni; baritone Neil Craighead, who plays both Zerlina’s husband Masetto and Donna Anna’s father, the Commendatore; and tenor Chuan Wang, who plays Donna Anna’s fiancee Don Ottavio.
The Vancouver-born, Toronto-based Theodosakis was first introduced to Don Giovanni when studying voice at the University of British Columbia. She performed in the chorus for a production at the university during her undergrad year. As a choreographer, she worked with the University of Toronto on a production of Don Giovanni which shifted the action to the 1940s and Theodosakis created foxtrot and swing-dance numbers rather than minuets.
When she approached the opera as a director, Theodosakis began studying the original 1630 play by Tirso de Molina and Moliere’s 1665 play Don Juan to get a sense of the “original myth and man of Don Juan,” she says. The Calgary Opera production changes the period from the 18th century to the late 17th century, which allows for colourful caps-and-capes costumes that recall the Three Musketeers.
“I thought it would be great to set it traditionally because we can still see the relevance of this story from back then all the way through today’s political climate,” she says. “I think it’s both gorgeous and a treat for the eyes while also highlighting how this kind of story prevails through time. Unfortunately, themes of domestic abuse and assault have always been relevant since the beginning of time. But the fact that we are now openly talking about it and hearing more from survivors makes it extra poignant for today’s audiences.”
Don Giovanni will be performed on Nov. 2, 6 and 8 at 7:30 p.m. at The Southern Jubilee Auditorium.