Don Giovanni

Metropolitan Opera House & Avery Fisher Hall from the NY State Theater

I went to see the NYCO production of Don Giovanni last night. Much better than the one I saw last season. (My friends and I spent the performance silently pleading with the rotund lead to lace up his shirt.)

The cast last night was really good. Marquita Lister was perfect as Donna Elvira and Rinat Shaham as Zerlina was adorable. The staging was impressive, although the transitions seemed a little rough. There was one stone bridge that insisted on swaying around after it had been dropped in place well into the scene.

So, on the opera tote board…let’s see:

• actual fire on stage—two torches! (plus a bunch of candles)
• deaths—one bloody run through with a sword and one descent straight into hell
• A couple trysts, mainly a lot of talk—ha