Tag Archives: Don Giovanni

May 08

Beating the Villain is Half the Fun in “Domme and Giovanni”

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Stefanos Koroneos, Stage Director & Projections Designer.

Presented by White Snake Projects
Composed by Ryan Oldham
Libretto by Liz Abram-Oldham and Cerise Lim Jacobs
Stage Directed by Stefanos Koroneos
Music Directed by Tianhui Ng
Donna Anna: Carami Hilaire (soprano)
Don Giovanni: Andrew Simpson (bass-baritone)
Donna Elivira: Pascale Spinney (mezzo-soprano)
Leporello: Kyle Oliver (baritone)
Jazz/Rock Band: David McGrory (keyboard/accordion), Dan J. Pelletier (percussion), 
Gillian Dana (bass), and John Tyler Ken (guitar)

May 5 -6, 2024
La Voile
1627 Beacon Street
Brookline, MA, 02445

Review by Gillian Daniels

BROOKLINE, Mass. – White Snake Projects, as part of their Opera Through the Looking Glass series, reframes Mozart’s Don Giovanni as an opera of cathartic, female-driven revenge. Donna Anna (Carami Hilaire, soprano), a professional dominatrix with a vendetta, and Donna Elvira (Pascale Spinney, mezzo-soprano), a self-serious FBI agent convinced she’s starring in an ‘80’s cop show, are working to bring down the titular Don Giovanni (Andrew Simpson, bass-baritone) from the beginning. 

There is no suggestion that Giovanni is supernaturally charming, just manipulative and cruel. He’s a mafia don, a crime boss who spills blood as gleefully as he demands a whipping from a hired sex worker. Not so much titillating as a campy, though there is indeed a striptease courtesy of Simpson, his relationship with Donna Anna is enthusiastic and more complex than even he realizes. Continue reading →

Apr 03

“Don Giovanni” Reframed for Our Troubled Times

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Photo via Boston Opera Collaborative

Presented by Boston Opera Collaborative
Music by Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart
Libretto by Lorenzo Da Ponte
Stage Direction by Patricia Maria-Weinman and Greg Smucker
Conducted by Tianhui Ng

March 28 – April 6
Ben Franklin Institute of Technology
41 Berkeley Street
Boston, MA 02116
Don Giovanni on Facebook

Content warning: Assault and sexual assault

Critique by Gillian Daniels

(Boston, MA) This iteration of Don Giovanni begins with a projection of the infamous pussy-grabbing quote from our Cheeto-in-Chief. It goes on to present images of Brett Kavanaugh, Kevin Spacey, Harvey Weinstein, and so many (too many) others. From minute one, it’s clear this is a production without subtlety, but for those of us who wake up in dread of what the news will say about the continued degradation of women’s rights in the United States, this is exactly the production we need. To use Don Giovanni as a lens to view our very national moment is a bold move and a difficult one to land. Continue reading →

May 07

Hate the Player, Not the Game: DON GIOVANNI

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Costume Designer Tilly Grimes, © T Charles Erickson Photography, Set Designer Laura Jellinek, Each ticket holder receives free admission to Rock’s Gun Show.

Presented by Boston Lyric Opera
Music by Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart
Libretto by Lorenzo Da Ponte
Sung in Italian with English supertitles
Conducted by David Angus
Stage Directed by Emma Griffin
Fight direction by Andrew Kenneth Moss
BLO Concertmaster: Sandra Kott
BLO Chorusmaster: Michelle Alexander

May 1 – 10, 2015
Boston Lyric Opera
The Shubert Theater
Boston, MA
BLO on Facebook

Review by Kitty Drexel

(Boston, MA) Opera singers are gifts that keep on giving. Along with my usual attendance of BLO’s Don Giovanni, I had the pleasure of experiencing a bonus adventure the Friday evening before while out with my wife. She and I were supposed to be on a romantic date. We did not count on a cameo by a premier performer. I was to be well-compensated for my diverted attention. Continue reading →