presents

DON GIOVANNIAn opera in two acts

byWolfgang Amadeus Mozart

3 December - 6 December 2008

To make any event, be it a party, wedding, dinner or corporate function, really stand out, let us entertain you.

Rhapsody Opera offer a huge variety of operatically themed shows, bringing your event to life in a unique, novel and hugely memorable way. Anytime, anyplace anywhere.

From Gilbert & Sullivan to grand opera arias and duets, from recitals to fully staged opera galas, from semi staged scenes to our own brand of “guerilla opera”; everything that we put on is planned around your situation, your venue and the effect that you want to achieve.

Talk to Dan or Sara after the show and we’d be delighted to tell you more or visit www.corporateopera.co.uk

DON GIOVANNIIl dissoluto punito, ossia Il Don GiovanniThe Libertine Punished or Don Giovanni

Opera buffa in two acts, K527, byWolfgang Amadeus Mozart

to a libretto by Lorenzo da Ponte.

Don Giovanni was first performed In Prague on the 29 October 1787

In Vienna on the 17 May 1788In London on the 12 April 1817

DON GIOVANNI

SynopsisDon Giovanni, a young licentious nobleman, after a life of amorous conquests, meets defeat in three encounters.

The first is with Donna Anna, whose vigorous tryst with Giovanni inevitably leads to the death of her father the Commendatore and the postponement of her marriage to Don Ottavio.

The second is with Donna Elvira, whom he has deserted but who follows him still.

The third is with Zerlina, an innocent peasant girl, whom Giovanni lasciviously lures from her fiancé, Masetto.

All vow vengeance and Don Giovanni’s destruction and deliverance to hell come at the hands of the Commendatore, raised from the dead and invited to supper.

A Message from the DirectorDon Giovanni is one of the most popular of Mozart’s operas and in my mind one of the most difficult to bring consistency to.

It is a fabulous amalgam of social comment, dramatic intensity, comic relief, and the supernatural. For me the piece is dark, even in its lighter moments.

The opera is about good and evil, depravity, power, righteous vengeance, retribution, heaven, hell and damnation. But also touches on the beauty of love, marriage and the sanctity of innocence.

The opera has over the years been produced stylistically, gutturally, boringly and extremely weirdly always grasping for an illusive seamlessness that will weld together the many themes that cry out so independently from the almost random scenes that unfold.

Notes on the production Quite literally the Don’s exploits are either figurative or simply impossible particularly considering his conquests are trans- continental and consummated following some considerable voyage, presumably on horseback or by carriage…

I have taken Leporello’s “list”, however, to be fact, and consequently worked to the premise that Don Giovanni has enlisted the help of some super-natural powers in his quest for women and licentious living.

Mozart himself has endorsed this premise by so vividly bringing the super-natural to life in the second act, combined with some tremendously dark passages of music.

So….

Don Giovanni elicits the help of some dark power and is absolutely irresistible to women.

Leporello is an unwilling participant, an acolyte incapable of refusal. He also provides the conscience the audience needs to have any empathy with such a rogue. He acts as a pivotal conduit between all parties from the very outset of the piece. A character at odds; ironic, laconic, maudlin, amusing yet sad– a jester if you will.

Donna Elvira whose vacillation between righteous anger and obsessive love suggest either extreme confusion or some other-worldly compulsion appears almost possessed.

In Donna Anna we see obsession and frustration; the entirety of her character within the piece focused so relentlessly on Giovanni.

Don Ottavio is the man perfectly positioned to avenge Don Giovanni’s transgressions and yet so palpably unable to act, appearing detached, almost impotent alongside the vengeful wrath of Anna.

Masetto and Zerlina are the innocents who represent those who must be protected at all costs and appear to be the catalyst of Giovanni’s downfall. It is the attempted corruption of this innocence following the murder of the Commendatore (not of course part of the Don’s super-natural pact) that leads to his extreme demise at the end.

The Commendatore is the manifestation of a higher power, the ultimate judge who can transcend this world and bring salvation or damnation to the profligate, the seducer, the philander and murderer.

All the above may well be unfounded hyperbole, but I’ve enjoyed myself. I sincerely hope that you do too.

Dan Luxon

Cast List

Don Giovanni Oliver Gibbs

Leporello Graham Stone

Donna Anna Helen Julie Johnson (Wednesday, Friday) Sara Clark (Thursday, Saturday)

Donna Elvira Marianne Wentzel

Don Ottavio Dan Luxon

Zerlina Gabrielle Highman

Masetto Christian Miller

The Commendatore David Yates

The action takes place in and around the houses of the Commendatore and Don Giovanni

sometime in the 18th Century

We would respectfully remind patrons that tape recording, video recording and the taking of photographs are not permitted during performances. Please also ensure that mobile phones are

switched off in the theatre.

Production

Director Dan Luxon

Musical Director Margaret Gibbs

Lighting Arts Depot Staff Amanda Epstein

Stage Manager Arts Depot Staff Front of House Arts Depot Staff

Wardrobe The Costume Store

Props Gabrielle, Helen, Marrianne, Jessica and Guy for their fabulous “Marotte”

Programme Design Peter Burch

Box Office Arts Depot

There will be an intervalof 20 minutes

between Act 1 and Act 2.

Biographies

Margaret Gibbs – Musical DirectorMargaret trained at the Royal Academy of Music where she was awarded prizes for accompaniment and operatic coaching. In conjunction with her work as a free-lance repetiteur and musical director with professional opera companies, she has had a long-standing interest in the field of adult education and as the erstwhile director of City Opera has been responsible for the preparation and presentation of over 50 opera productions.

She has appeared on the concert platform in Great Britain and Europe and has performed on radio and television as both soloist and accompanist.

Dan Luxon – Director/Don OttavioDan’s directorial debut of Cosi fan tutte for Rhapsody in 2007 was well received as was the double bill of Rita and Il Segreto di Susanna in May 2008. Determined to incorporate all, from the sublime to solidly ridiculous, he hopes his directorial mark will be enjoyed by all.

As a performer, Dan has delivered many leading roles for a wide variety of travelling and permanent companies. For a number of years Dan sang regularly with Garsington Opera and for Raymond Gubbay. Operatic roles include Don Jose (Carmen), Nadir (The Pearl Fishers), Riccardo (Ballo in Maschera), Alfredo (La Traviata), Turridu, (Cavalleria Rusticana), Rodolfo (La Bohème), Rinuccio (Gianni Schicchi), Alfredo (Die Fledermaus), Tamino (The Magic Flute), Ferrando (Cosi fan tutte), Bob Bowles (Peter Grimes), Beppe (Rita).

Outside Opera, Dan performed as a soloist in the Northeast Proms series, was part of an Opera themed cruise down the Amazon and frequently performs oratorio and recital work all over the UK.

Sara Clark – Donna AnnaSara was born in London and read History at Cambridge University. Sara has sung a variety of roles in opera, operetta and musicals, including Despina (Cosi fan tutte), Rosalinda and Adele (Die Fledermaus), Musetta (La Bohème), Zerlina (Don Giovanni), Oscar (Masked Ball), Nannetta (Falstaff), Susanna and Barbarina (Marriage of Figaro), Queen of the Night (Magic Flute), Morgana (Alcina), Gabrielle (La Vie Parisienne), Sarah Millick (Bitter Sweet), Rapunzel (Into the Woods), Polly Peachum (The Threepenny Opera), the title roles in La Belle Hélène, Donizetti’s Maria Stuarda and Rita and Massenet’s Cendrillon.

She has also sung most of the Gilbert and Sullivan heroines, namely Mabel (Pirates of Penzance), Gianetta (Gondoliers), Josephine (HMS Pinafore), Patience (Patience), Plaintiff (Trial by Jury), Phyllis (Iolanthe), Aline (Sorcerer), Elsie (Yeomen of the Guard), Princess Ida (Princess Ida) and Yum Yum (Mikado). Sara is coached by Christopher Gould.

Oliver Gibbs – Don GiovanniOliver was born in London and gained a degree in Theatre Studies and English Literature at Lancaster University and a postgraduate diploma in acting from the London Academy of Performing Arts. After initially following a career in acting, he subsequently concentrated on his singing with spells appearing in the chorus with The D’Oyly Carte Opera and Grange Park Opera. He has performed principal roles such as Eugene Onegin, The Count and Figaro (Le Nozze di Figaro), Coppelius (Tales of Hoffmann), Smirnov (The Bear) and Malatesta (Don Pasquale) with Opera South-East, Midsummer Opera, Aquarian Opera and Opera Minima. He has also appeared as Dromio di Efeso in Storace’s Gli Equivoci at the Batignano Festival in Tuscany and presented a solo recital at the Edinburgh Festival. Other roles include Mustapha (Italian Girl in Algiers), Giorgio Germont (La Traviata), Silvio (Pagliacci) and

Captain Corcoran (HMS Pinafore) for Carl Rosa Opera. He has more recently sung the roles of Dr Bartolo (Barber of Seville) for Opera East, Fire in the new opera Flood by Kirsten Morrison, a role created for him, and Father (Hansel & Gretel) for Opera Minima. For Rhapsody Opera he has sung Guglielmo (Cosi fan tutte) and Gasparo (Rita). He is also a member of the extra chorus at the Royal Opera House.

Gabrielle Highman – ZerlinaGabrielle has sung various roles in opera including Susanna (Marriage of Figaro), Despina (Cosi fan tutte), Musetta (La Bohème), Lauretta (Gianni Schicchi), Frasquita and Mercedes (Carmen), L’enfant (L’enfant et les sortileges), Giannetta (The Gondoliers), Susanna (Il Segreto di Susanna) and Second Lady (The Magic Flute). Gabrielle has also performed in oratorio singing soprano solo in such works as Dona Nobis Pacem (Vaughan Williams), Pergolesi’s Stabat Matar and Mozart’s Mass in C. Gabrielle is a regular member of Opera Viva which specialises in concert performances of opera scenes and arias.

Helen Julie Johnson – Donna AnnaHelen enjoys a busy schedule, performing principal roles for several Opera companies. Helen has recently performed the roles of Mimi (La Bohème), Donna Elvira (Don Giovanni), Micaela (Carmen), Amelia (Un Ballo in Maschera), Belinda (Dido and Aeneas), Fiordiligi (Cosi fan tutte), Countess Almaviva (The Marriage of Figaro), Marenka (The Bartered Bride), Pamina (The Magic Flute), Antonia (The Tales of Hoffmann.), Butterfly (Madam Butterfly), Rosalinde (Die Fledermaus), Violetta (La Traviata), Elettra (Idomeneo) and the title roles in Suor Angelica and Donizetti’s Maria Stuarda. She studies with Raymond Connell and Yvonne Kenny and is coached by Christopher Gould and Linnhe Robertson.

Christian Miller - MasettoChristian’s interest in opera began with singing chorus in UCL Opera Society’s productions of rare opera. From there, he began having singing lessons and first considered the possibility of training as a classical soloist. Aside from training privately, he joined the ENO Baylis Knack singing and performance skills course, masterminded by Mary King (ENO, South Bank) for its final year.

In opera he has sung the roles of Ottone (Coronation of Poppea), Aeneas (Dido and Aeneas), Frank (Die Fledermaus) and Melchior (Amahl and the Night Visitors). As an oratorio soloist he has also sung the role of Pilate (St John Passion) and performed as a soloist in various works within both Southern England and Italy.

Graham Lawder Stone – LeporelloGraham started in music as a brass player and by the age of 17 had performed in a Royal Variety Performance and on Val Parnell’s Sunday Night at the London Palladium. His first real stage role was as Tony in West Side Story which was advertised in an episode of Dixon of Dock Green. He studied singing with the eminent baritone John Hargreaves and later with Nina Walker, Joy Roper and Stephen Wilder. He studied acting with Philip Tyler.

He has sung many major opera roles and Gala concerts, including, most recently, Amonasro (Aida) for Windsor and Eton, Rigoletto for Park Opera, Kecal (The Bartered Bride) and Ashton (Lucia) for Opera at Bearwood, and Colline (La Bohème) at Epsom Playhouse and the Minack, for Beaufort Opera. In 2003 he sang Lescaut at Southgate College; the tenor was a certain Paul Potts. Also Michele (Tabarro) for Porcupine and Gil (Il Segreto di Susanna) and Alphonso (Cosi fan tutte) for Rhapsody Opera. As a graphic artist and caricaturist, set design commissions include full productions of The Magic Flute for Diana Saperia, The Mariage of Figaro for Oliver Broome, scenic projections of Bussoni’s Turandot and Gianni Schicchi for Stephen Pimlott and Dialogues of the Carmelites for Michael Rennison .

Marianne Wentzel – Donna Elvira Marianne graduated from the Opera School at the University of Cape Town, after which she joined the Opera Studio at Cape Town Opera as the resident mezzo-soprano, making her professional debut as Dorabella in Mozart’s Cosi fan tutte. She was also a member of the Opera Ensemble at Cape Town Opera, performing various roles including Cherubino Marriage of Figaro, Vera Baronel The Consul and Mrs Todd The Old Maid and the Thief (both by Menotti), 3rd Lady The Magic Flute, Mrs Herring Albert Herring, Rosina Il Barbiere di Siviglia, Charlotte in Massenet’s Werther and many more.

Marianne first performed in the UK in 2003 and has been seen as Cenerentola in Rossini’s La Cenerentola for Vox Lirika which she also performed at the Canterbury Festival, and both 2nd and 3rd Lady in The Magic Flute. She has performed the roles of Ulrica Un Ballo in Maschera , the title role in Bizet’s Carmen, Elizabeth I Maria Stuarda by Donizetti and Suzuki in Madam Butterfly. She performed Flora in Verdi’s La Traviata for Vox Lirika during 2005-6 in Margate, Southsea and Cambridge. She has also performed Count Orlofsky in Johann Strauss’ Die Flerdermaus on the Isles of Scilly and during 2007 she performed Dorabella. She is currently singing the title role in Carmen for Vox Lirika.

David Yates – The CommendatoreDavid, who makes his debut with Rhapsody Opera, read Law at Oxford before pursuing a career in horseracing journalism, and currently writes under the nom de plume ‘Newsboy’ for the Daily Mirror. He studies with Geoffrey Thompson and past stage roles include Don Giovanni, Leporello, Masetto (Don Giovanni), Lockit (Britten’s Beggar’s Opera), Sarastro (Die Zauberflote), Water Gnome (Rusalka), Seneca (L’Incoronazione di Poppea), Colline (La Boheme), Bottom (A Midsummer Night’s Dream), Gubetta (Lucrezia Borgia), Gaudenzio (Il Signor Bruschino) and Betto (Gianni Schicchi).

To make any event, be it a party, wedding, dinner or corporate function, really stand out, let us entertain you.

Rhapsody Opera offer a huge variety of operatically themed shows, bringing your event to life in a unique, novel and hugely memorable way. Anytime, anyplace anywhere.

From Gilbert & Sullivan to grand opera arias and duets, from recitals to fully staged opera galas, from semi staged scenes to our own brand of “guerilla opera”; everything that we put on is planned around your situation, your venue and the effect that you want to achieve.

Talk to Dan or Sara after the show and we’d be delighted to tell you more or visit www.corporateopera.co.uk

Dr D Sister

Feel as young as you lookLook as young as you feel

8/9 Lambton PlaceLondon W11 2SH

Tel: 020 7221 2248drsister@onetel.comwww.drdsister.com