Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #39588 in DVD
• Released on: 2009-05-26
• Rating: NR (Not Rated)
• Aspect ratio: 1.77:1
• Number of discs: 2
• Formats: Classical, Color, DVD, NTSC, Subtitled, Widescreen
• Original language: Italian
• Subtitled in: Dutch, English, French, Italian, Spanish
• Number of discs: 2
• Running time: 202 minutes

Turok's Choice, Paul Turok, November 2009
TC has reviewed seven DVD versions of Mozart's Don Giovanni (Issues 115,137, 179, Arthaus; 160, 186, Opus Arte; 173, TDK; 197, EMI), but the eighth, from the Royal Opera (Covent Garden) in 2008, is the only production that treats the work as a tragedy with comic moments, according to the work's designation as a "dramma giocoso" (1009 D, two discs). The singing is terrific; Simon Keenlyside (Don Giovanni), Kyle Ketelsen (Leporello), Marina Poplayskaya (Donna Anna), Joyce DiDonato (Donna Elvira), Miah Persson (Zerlina). In addition, Ramón Vargas brings star-quality singing to the usually colorless role of Don Ottavio. Charles Mackerras leads the excellent orchestra in one of his most dynamic performances. All three female leads look their roles; the Don certainly would find them attractive, which is not always the case in performances of the opera. High definition video and great sound in all three formats. Several short bonus interviews are provided.

Partererre Box, Indiana Loiterer III, November 5, 2009
Some scenes, like certain recipes, look so simple on the page yet turn out to be next to impossible to stage credibly. Take, for instance, the end of the first act of Don Giovanni. We all know what has happened; the Don has accused Leporello of assaulting Zerlina, but nobody is buying his story. Somehow or other the Don gets away scot-free at Leporello's expense, as Leporello will complain at the beginning of the next act. But how? (This being the stretta of an opera buffa finale, there are no stage directions to guide us.)

Usually the Don strikes some dashing pose or other center stage while everyone else mills about aimlessly, which doesn't get us from here to there. In the new DVD of Francesca Zambello's Covent Garden production of Don Giovanni from Opus Arte, Simon Keenlyside as Don Giovanni, having casually disarmed his enemies of their swords and pistols during the stretta, makes his escape by climbing the wall on a red rope dangled by one of his red-clad servants. It gets us from here to there, after a fashion, but rather crudely; which kind of summed up my feelings about the production.

Red is a very important color in this production (sets and costumes, the latter fantastical late eighteenth-century, by Maria Bjornson). Don Giovanni is dressed all in red and reddish-brown, which flatters Keenlyside's complexion rather nicely. The ballroom of the palace of the Act 1 finale is all in red, with matching lackeys. This contrasts with the virginal white of Donna Elvira's Act 1 wedding gown and Zerlina's shift (a very unflattering garment for poor Miah Persson). Clearly we are meant to liken Don Giovanni to the Devil.

There is plenty of fire in the final scene-none of it connected to the Commendatore, who rises from below looking just as he had when alive, and whose statue is represented by a hand-like structure made of blue lights at the back of the stage, scarcely visible at all in the previous graveyard scene, which moves to the front to the stage at last to cast the Don into hell. (Eric Halfvarson's wobbly singing as the Commendatore didn't help make him seem any more threatening.) But in a final touch, the last thing we see in the Epilogue is... Don Giovanni in hell holding a naked woman in his arms. What kind of punishment is this?

Under the circumstances, Keenlyside literally climbs the walls a lot-the first verse of "Deh vieni alla finestra" is sung while hanging with one hand off Donna Elvira's garden wall-but piles on the soft legato charm with the ladies, achieving genuine vocal and physical elegance in "La ci darem la mano". The Devil can be a gentleman, as goes the old saying; but he can also be a positive ruffian with the men, as "Meta da voi" revealed-the duel with the Commendatore is rendered as a mugging pure and simple (not even with Don Giovanni's sword, but Leporello's dagger!)

But this is a very violent production by traditional standards (props to fight director William Hobbs); even Donna Elvira in her opening scene brandishes a musket, though to no good use considering that just by pulling the trigger she could have dispatched Don Giovanni then and there. Also a very touchy-feely production; when during "Mi tradi" Zerlina and Donna Anna wander in and began taking things away from Donna Elvira, we seemed to have wandered into a group therapy session.

Of the three ladies, vocal honors go to Joyce DiDonato's Donna Elvira. I was surprised at how large and how comfortable with the higher reaches of the music her voice seemed. What with her unremitting vocal and dramatic intensity throughout the first act, the notion that some misguided early-music conductor suggested the Fidelio Leonore to her seemed less crazy. (And having heard her in the Curtis Alcina, I marvel all the more that she can adjust her vocal approach from the delicate nuances of period-instrument Handel to the broader strokes of big-house Mozart.)

Persson, as Zerlina, has the sort of light lyric soprano that projects as solidly in its lower octave as it gleams above the staff; she was the most enthusiastic adder of ornaments among the cast. Marina Poplavskaya threw herself into Donna Anna's plight with plenty of gumption, but the music doesn't show her voice to advantage; declamatory passages too often came out dark and foggy, and anything above the staff thinned out.

Kyle Ketelsen, as Leporello, offered an exceptionally nuanced vocal performance matched to a smooth and ringing bass, without milking the audience's attention even though he rather overdid the physical awkwardness shtick. (I especially enjoyed his handling of the multivolume encyclopedia of Don Giovanni's conquests-did I tell you this is a prop-heavy production?) Ramon Vargas, as Don Ottavio, has vastly improved his posture since I last saw him as Ramiro in the Met Cenerentola back in 1998. He played the role as a properly manly aristocrat rather than the stereotypical wimp, to the point of rather barging his way through "Dalla sua pace" so that you realized what a difficult aria it was ("O mio tesoro" fared well, though).

Robert Gleadow, the Masetto, sounded right, but he could have restrained his temper a little- or at least directed it to some object other than Zerlina- to dramatic advantage. Sir Charles Mackerras, in the pit, conducted with his usual energy; few of his patented added ornaments made it into this performance, but appoggiaturas abounded.

So should you buy this performance? It's not one for the ages. There are better traditional Don Giovanni productions on DVD out there. Still, it's pretty well sung and conducted; it may not be worth preserving on DVD, but it would I imagine be an enjoyable evening in the theater.

Customer Reviews

A Splendid Gon
This is Keenlyside's second performance of DG to be committed to DVD. Overall it is a great performance. But then he (along with Malin Hartelius) justify perchase of the Zurich (earlier) performance: my recollection was that it was relatively inexpensive. The Zurich performance cannot boast of a "starry" cast, choosing many regulars for the remainder of the cast. It is also very regie oriented although not as obnoxiously as some of the director's other works, e.g., Peleas and Rosenkavalier.

It is quite interesting to compare SK's two different takes on the anti-hero. In Zurich there is some wit and irony in all that SK does with the role. He would appear to be amused at much of what is happening. In the ROH taping, this Don is demonic, possessed and dangerous. Needless to say in both his singing is beyond criticism. Even at the ROH when is needed (La cidarem, Vieni alla finestra, etc.)it is there. Because of the staging and direction at Zurich the ROH is more memorable if only because it is more conventional in approach. Overall the casting more than trumps the earlier set. I understand that the Anna, Marina Poplavskaya was ill; even so she is still able to triumph over her rival, Eva Mei (Zurich); clips on YouTube, notably from Salzburg allow you to hear her in top form. Joyce Didonato is the Elvira. I don't know when the idea of casting a mezzo for this role started, (Zerlina has also been given this role) but Didonato is very, very good. Even so I miss a soprano in the role. Miah Persson, the Zerlina (deluxe casting) really should have sung the Elvira. Kyle Ketelson is a wonderful Leporello, a superb singing actor. Ramon Vargas turned in a lovely performance of Ottavio. I have never heard him in Mozart and he is clearly up to the challenges of Il mio tesoro. Overall the set has no weak points vocally.

The production is all over the place but is far preferable to Zurich; Zambello must rate very high with the powers that be at ROH. Her recent Carmen was excellent; here she is less concerned with opting for an 18th century period, but mixes conventional period dress with contemporary garb. In this case powered wigs were out and a variation on the mullet was the hair design of choice. While the settings were not particularly evocative of Spain (or any other place) they were preferable to those in the Jacobs' performance.

Highly recommended

The only saving aspect is Joyce Di Donato's Elvira
Let's face it: modern operatic productions are now facing a dire crisis in terms of vocal as well as visual standard.
This ROH production has enough vices in respect of both, but frankly speaking, this is by no means the worst.
Vocally, Simon Keenlyside's reprisal of Don G is a failure for himself.
The Champagne Aria simply fails to take off, and the duet with Zerlina too 'creamy', while the Serenade is sorely 'under'.
One misses sadly the Don of Cesare Siepi in that 1950's mono and black and white DVD under Furtwangler. Not one single modern production on DVD came any close to that one, let alone surpassing it.
The only salvage point in this ROH 2008 production is Joyce Didonato's Donna Elvira, the best since Elisabeth Schwarzkopf.
And whoever casts Ramon Vargas as Don Ottavio commits a grave mistake - Vargas is a first-rate bel canto lyrical tenor; not Mozartian tenor. Whatever happened to the Donna Anna in this production, there is surely an understudy competent enough to take her role, especially that this is to be commercially released on DVD!
And the conductor even fails to keep pace with the singers in more than one entry, undoubtedly the result of under-rehersal.
As for the sets, well, suffice to mention that it could be worse.

A refreshing new approach
Visually I enjoyed this performance immensely, if it is a little on the dark side. I was captivated particularly by the acting ability, the facial expressions, and of course the magnificent singing of the leads which told the story so dramatically. The set(s)were superb and the finale awesome. But I was shocked from the beginning by the thin, boxy sound of the orchestra; devoid of ambience with no full base, it sounded like a 1950's LP. I kept thinking of Gulini's magnificent 1961 CD. This spoilt the overall enjoyment for me. I only hope we are not going to sacrifice audio quality in classical DVDs - we're not talking about movies here!
Michael Cooke, San Francisco