REVIEW: DON GIOVANNI BY MOZART, GARSINGTON OPERA
By William Hartston
By William Hartston
GARSINGTON Opera is only in its second year at the Getty estate at Wormsley, not far from High Wycombe in Buckinghamshire, but it has really settled into its stride with imaginative productions of both old favourites and revivals of almost forgotten works.
The setting is glorious, with a temporary, but comfortable opera pavilion (whose heating problems are beginning to be solved) situated next to the most beautiful cricket ground in the country.
As if to emphasize its commitment to civilised values, there is even a road sign saying: "To the cricket and opera". With sheep, deer and a horse with baby foal all wandering contentedly over the estate's vast fields, complimentary coach rides to a beautifully laid out walled garden, and a long interval to enjoy a picnic, this is an idyllic setting for a relaxing afternoon. Or it would have been if the sun had come out and the rain stopped.
This year's season began with a new production of Don Giovanni for which an impressively talented cast of young singers had been assembled. The Australian baritone Grant Doyle was perfect as the dastardly Don, combining a fine, powerful voice with a splendid swagger and confident and energetic movements around the stage that emphasised his irresistibility.
The many women in his life were led by the marvellous Sophie Bevan, pouting perfectly as Donna Elvira, while Sophie's sister Mary Bevan played Zerlina. With Natasha Jouhl as Donna Anna, this added up to as perfect a trio of conquests, in voice, good looks and acting ability, as the Don could wish for. The other male roles were also well sung and acted, particularly Jesus Leon as Don Ottavio, whose rendition of the lovely 'Il mio tesoro' aria was one of the high points of the opera.
So far, so good, and for the opening acts, this new production directed by Daniel Slater displayed a wonderful energy and delicious bits of humour that perfectly matched the venue and the youthful cast. But then it all went haywire at the end.
The plot of Don Giovanni starts with him killing the Commendatore whose daughter he has just seduced. At the end, in conventional productions, a statue of the Commendatore comes to life, accepts a dinner invitation from Giovanni, and drags him off, unrepentant, to Hell. In Slater's production, it's not quite clear what happens at the end at all, but it seems that the wicked seducer is injected with something by Don Ottavio that renders him helpless and brainless and he is consigned to a lunatic asylum.
The connection of this with the Commendatore's icy handshake is unclear, and the lyrics, which clearly talk about him being dragged into the flames of Hell, do not match the actions. It is not even clear if the Commendatore is dead or on life support, as he seems to be singing from a hospital window, while his cadaver is on stage being addressed by Don Giovanni and his servant Leporello. All a bit of a mess really, which was a great shame as the whole performance was unmitigated joy until the silly ending.
