Mozart’s 1787 tragi-comic masterpiece is universally recognised as one of the greatest operas of all time. Richard Wagner, for instance, referred to it as ‘the opera of all operas’. The libretto, by Lorenzo Da Ponte, tells the story of Don Giovanni, a Spanish nobleman known as a serial seducer of women. He eventually gets his come-uppance when the ghost of a man he has killed comes back to haunt him. This performance is directed by Aytaç Manizade; the Istanbul State Opera and Ballet Orchestra, conducted by İbrahim Yazıcı, is conducted by İbrahim Yazıcı, and the chorus by Volkan Akkoç.
In my review of a performance of Don Giovanni at the AKM in March this year, I said that co-ordination between the singers and the orchestra was somewhat shaky, the former being almost invariably slightly behind, or slightly ahead of, the latter. I very much hope that further rehearsal will have sorted this problem.
On the positive side, the production was excellent from the acting point of view, and that there were some nice dramatic touches. Also, I had high praise for the final scene: ‘Suddenly, the singers and the members of the orchestra raised their game and were perfectly in sync; I shivered involuntarily, and the hairs on the back of my neck stood on end as the apparition made its way with chillingly deliberate steps from the back of the stage to the place where Don Giovanni lay, transfixed and in deadly fear.’
Issue 66, December 2023
Turkey’s Centenary Issue
