Brigham Young University’s School of Music will feature BYU Opera and the BYU Philharmonic Orchestra in a production of Mozart’s “Don Giovanni” Wednesday through Saturday, Oct. 22-25, at 7 p.m. in the de Jong Concert Hall, Harris Fine Arts Center.
There will be dress rehearsals on Saturday, Oct. 18, and Tuesday, Oct. 21. Tickets are $20, or $16 on weeknights and $17 on weekends with a BYU or student ID. Dress rehearsal tickets are $10. To purchase tickets, call the Fine Arts Ticket Office at (801) 422-4322 or visit byuarts.com.
In this classic 1787 opera based on the legend of Don Juan, Don Giovanni leads a life of reckless abandon while his trickster servant Leporello arranges his female conquests. Scoffing at Giovanni’s last hope for redemption, supernatural forces avenge those he has seduced and abandoned.
“In a time when baseness, gratuitous violence and sex in entertainment are not only touted, but (also) have become the ‘norm,’ it is comforting to know that there are works that still provide a moral compass for their audiences,” said director Lawrence Vincent. “’Don Giovanni’ is such a work.”
“Seldom are there enough gifted singers in a university setting to tackle a monumental work such as ‘Giovanni,’” Vincent said. “The School of Music is fortunate to have a group of talented performers who have proven they are not only up to the task, but also are fine singers and actors.”
In preparation for the production, the students translated all the Italian words they will sing to better understand the characters and the text. The students’ work contributed to the supertitles that will be shown during the opera.
“Mozart’s operas fuse together drama and music to address topics of contemporary social relevance,” said Luke Howard of the School of Music. “To tackle the issue of the decline of the feudal system and the ‘old’ morality in ‘Don Giovanni,’ he used a gritty realism never before seen in opera.”
The BYU Philharmonic Orchestra will be conducted by Kory Katseanes.
The cast features Shea Owens and Stephen Pace as Don Giovanni, Adam Walton, Benjamin Boster and John Kovalenko as Leporello, Nicolas Orrego and Ted Reedy as Massetto, Dane Holmes as the Commandatore, Joseph Olson and Zachary Milliman as Don Ottavio, Rachel Willis-Sorenson and Mindy Ammons as Donna Anna, Marilyn-Reid Smith and Melissa Jensen as Donna Elvira and Amy Owens and Alainna Fielding as Zerlinna.
The production team includes Jon Holloman, artistic director; Donnette Perkins and Deanne DeWitt, costume designers; Rachel Haab and Adria Potter, assistant costume designers; and Jeanne Burnett, makeup designer.
For more information, contact Lawrence Vincent at (801) 422-3165.
Writer: Angela Fischer
