Don Giovanni
“ … if not a perfect Don Giovanni—as an artwork, this one defies perfection—then something very close to it … It was at once hilarious and distressing, moving and smart, and thanks to judicious cutting, the whole thing sped by in less than two hours. …
Proske’s most inventive move was to set the second act in a mental hospital, where Don Giovanni was confined for his aberrant behavior. … I left Proske’s Don Giovanni feeling both shattered and strangely fulfilled, having been asked to contemplate, and indeed take some responsibility for, the prospect of an otherwise contemptible guy getting a raw deal. Justice veering off into revenge is never a pretty sight, and it’s always worth being reminded of that, even—or especially—now.” - Threepenny Review
Don Giovanni
by Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart and Lorenzo Da Ponte
produced by Heartbeat Opera
May 2018
"vital ... ingenious .... imaginatively deconstructed and reconceived .... cleverly adapted and directed ... a female revenge fantasy" - The Wall Street Journal
"... no holds barred ... Donna Anna knows damn well who’s in her bedroom, Donna Elvira means business when she threatens to rip out Giovanni’s heart, and Zerlina isn’t about to let her bumpkin husband keep her from a sexual adventure ... Director/adaptor Louisa Proske delivered that version—and more ..." - Opera News
"a Mozart lover's wet dream ... Heartbeat's Giovanni successfully bucks tradition ... I'd given up hope that Giovanni's plot could surprise me. ... I implore Mozart fans and novices alike turn out for this singular production." - Schmopera
Music Director: Jacob Ashworth
New Arrangement: Daniel Schlosberg
Additional Direction and Musical Staging: Chloe Treat
Cast:
Zerlina // Samarie Alicea
Leporello // Matthew Gamble
Don Ottavio // Keith Browning
Donna Elvira // Felicia Moore
Donna Anna // Leela Subramaniam
Don Giovanni // John Taylor Ward
Masetto/Commendatore // Barrington Lee
Also featuring Zina Ellis and Parker Drown
Designers: Kate Noll, Beth Goldenberg, Oliver Wason, Kate Marvin
photos by Russ Rowland