Don Giovanni is universally considered one of Mozart’s best operas. A major part of this charm is the fact that it can be viewed as both a tragedy and a comedy. There is no correct classification to this opera, since it effortlessly transitions from joy to sorrow and back, within the span of a moment. Thus, it is up to each individual viewer to decide what the performance made him/her feel.

Personally, I view Don Giovanni as a comedy. This opinion, though, was only established after actually seeing the opera. Prior to watching it, upon reading its libretto, I was certain that the opera is in fact a tragedy. That is, because it both started and ended with death: first the Commendatore’s, then Don Giovanni’s. Such morbidity provided the opera with a gruesome and depressing tone. The fact that Don Giovanni continually deceived and exploited women didn’t help brighten up the mood, since it made me lose faith in his humanity and compassion. However, experiencing the libretto, rather than merely reading it, completely changed my perception of the opera. The bright costumes, upbeat melodies, exaggerated acting, and of course – Laporello’s witty remarks, all managed to embed some lightness and joyfulness within the otherwise-heavy plot. I left the opera house in a rather good mood, which would definitely not have been the case if Don Giovanni were a tragedy. The performance still managed to convey themes such as betrayal, gluttony, lust and vengeance, but it did so by incorporating comedy and keeping the audience engaged.

Another aspect of Don Giovanni is the fact that class differences were quite evident in it. Even though there were characters from both the noble and peasant classes, these characters didn’t interact equally and were well aware of their rights and limitations. This was most evident with Don Giovanni himself, who used his high class as justification to dehumanize noble and peasant women alike. Moreover, he practically abused Laporello, his servant, by making him an accomplice of his womanizing ways and even putting his life at risk. The best representatives of the lower class, though, were Masetto and Zerlina. They were supposed to symbolize pure young love, but even this unique bond was shook by Don Giovanni’s selfishness and impulsiveness. He sought to steal Zerlina from her fiancée, knowing full well that his lavish lifestyle would charm and blind her. The second romantic relationship in the opera – that between Donna Anna and Don Ottavio was quite different from Zerlina and Masetto’s relationship. It’s quite interesting how opposing these two dynamics are. In a way, it seems that nobles’ love is more “powerful” than a peasant bond, since Don Ottavio was simply obsessed with his fiancé Donna Anna, and was willing to unconditionally wait for her no matter what happens. This wasn’t quite the case with the two peasants – as soon as Masetto saw Zerlina with Don Giovanni, he wished to leave her. So, it seems that noble and peasant relationships in this opera are everything but similar. The only part of the performance where some class equality was evident was its very ending, when all of the characters were standing together, celebrating Don Giovanni’s demise. He seems to have been their uniting force.

One simply cannot discuss an opera by Mozart without mentioning the music in the performance. A major part of the reason my Don Giovanni reading and viewing experiences were so different was the instrumentals and vocals of the opera. The actors’ voices were absolutely enchanting, while their accompaniment was superb. I was thoroughly impressed by Mozart’s melodies, since they perfectly coincided with the opera’s plot. Morbid and heavy scenes, such as Don Giovanni’s death, were accompanied by low, dramatic and ominous music, while funny and happy scenes, such as Laporello’s dressing up as his master, were accompanied by fast, joyful and light melodies. This juxtaposition of different musical styles enriched the performance, set the mood for the audience, and enhanced each actor’s talents.

My overall experience of viewing Don Giovanni at the Metropolitan Opera was one I shall never forget. It was my first time ever going to the opera, but surely not my last. As I was watching it, I couldn’t help but be mind-boggled by the fact that people were enjoying this exact opera over two hundred years ago. This sure puts modern entertainment in perspective, since it teaches teenagers such as myself the value of timeless talent and music. Most other performances we viewed in this class were modern, so it was quite refreshing and mind-opening to watch an opera. Of course, contemporary forms of self-expression are crucial parts of our culture, and for that I deeply respect them. The main example for this is the first performance we’ve watched together – RoseAnne Spradlin’s  “Beginning of Something,” which was absolutely revolutionary and unforgettable. It is hard for me to decide which performance I enjoyed more – Beginning of Something or Don Giovanni – but what is clear is that they are each beautiful in their own ways, and should both be celebrated.

Don Giovanni, to me, has always been a perfect blend of comedy with tragedy. The overall storyline with Don Giovanni ‘s downfall was a tragedy. This incredible opera ends with the dragging of Don Giovanni to hell by the statue of the Commandatore as consequence to his crimes. The different sexual encounters that Don Giovanni has with the women, leading them to seek revenge, and the violent death of the Commandatore makes this opera rather grim. However, there are many comic scenes with Leporello, who I felt stole the show. His reminders to Don Giovanni of his immoral actions come in a manner of funny recitatives and arias. His close relationship with Don Giovanni allows him to say many things with no restraints and therefore, he takes the opportunity to utter many humorous remarks.

The class differences in the libretto I thought were due the naming of the characters and the way that the lower class characters talked to the higher class characters. The lower class characters were only called by only their names such as Zerlina, Masseto, and Leporello rather than Don Giovanni, Donna Anna, Donna Elvira, and Don Octavio. Also, the lower class characters spoke formally to the characters of the higher class. Leporello, even though a close friend of Don Giovanni, spoke to him with rather respect. The same went for the way that Zerlina and Masseto spoke to Don Giovanni. They had respect for the nobleman even though Masseto knew what was going on. Also, the manner of speaking for lower class characters usually consisted of more repetitions in their arias or lines, which also went with the music.

The blend of comedy and tragedy is reflected in the music of Mozart, displaying the incredible skills that people admire of Mozart.  There are quick tempo, short repeated melodic phrases accompanying Leporello’s arias and witty remarks. Contrasting the comedy, there were long, ominous tones for the music for scenes such as the graveyard scene and the statue of the Commendatore dragging Don Giovanni to hell.  The music enhanced the opera’s emotions and cued the viewer in on all the different characters in a specific scene.  Also, when characters had arias (the long emotional monologues), the music was successfully able to capture the emotions whether humorous like Leporello’s catalogue aria or enticing like Don Giovanni and Zerlina’s aria of “ La ci darem la mano”.

I enjoyed the opera in its entirety with the costumes, grand voices, orchestral music, and incredible staging and effects. This version of Don Giovanni wasn’t the best in my opinion because even though the characters’ voices and the music was incredible and stayed true to the opera, the acting and staging was not as convincing to me. There wasn’t a flow or a nice movement through the scenes and the acting felt a little too stiff.  With that being said, the opera in general compared to the other more contemporary performances we have experienced during the seminar was much more extravagant. The experience of actually going to an opera and viewing an opera added to the grandiose performance with dressing up and viewing the beautiful opera house. The other more cotemporary performances were more focused on what was on that stage and how we felt about what was being presented to us rather than where we were watching the performance or the etiquette of watching the performance. Also, we had more or less expectations of the opera while for the other contemporary performances, anything could’ve happened.

Initially, after reading the libretto, I saw Don Giovanni as a tragedy. Although Leporello served as a comic foil to the character of Don Giovanni, providing many light moments to break the tension, it seemed the greater themes made the story more of a drama. The libretto tells the story of a tragic hero, a womanizer whose pride and reckless, self-centered behavior ultimately causes his downfall. Throughout the story, Don Giovanni deceives and betrays many women and acts selfishly at the expense of others. Betrayal, jealousy, and revenge are dominant themes that seem to ultimately triumph (with Don Giovanni’s condemnation to death for his wicked deeds).
However after seeing the opera, complete with music and actors who added another dimension to the story, I found the story to be much more comedic! There were moments where I actually found myself laughing out loud, especially at Leporello’s side comments. The plot seemed all the more obscene and ridiculous, with characters running back and forth in the madness of it all. Relations between the characters—Don Ottavio’s undying devotion to Donna Anna, Zerlina’s back-and-forth jig between the romancing Don Giovanni and the envious Masetto, and Donna Elvira’s relentless attachment to Don Giovanni—seemed all to be a bit outlandish and definitely amusing. Then there were clearly comical scenes (like Leporello’s switch with Don Giovanni) that were there for the mere purpose of entertainment. Together, all of these scenarios and relationships played out by the performers, accompanied by music, made the plight of Don Giovanni seem like much more of a comedy than tragedy!
There were definitely class differences reflected in the libretto when you compare the relationships of Donna Anna and Don Ottavio versus Masetto and Zerlina. Donna Anna was a wealthy woman who Don Ottavio dotingly followed, whereas Masetto didn’t fawn over Zerlina in the same way. Their relationship was more straightforward and simple; neither worshiped one another and they were together for their modest love for one another. Don Giovanni emphasized the stark differences between the aristocracy and the underclasses. He acted as an entitled aristocrat, doing as he pleased and taking all women as if they were subject to his will and needs. Even though he was so “fair” and “generous” to take women of all shapes, ages, and classes, he generally acts greedily and lustfully towards women (and Leporello too!), as if his wealth justifies his domineering attitude.
The music did a good job of conveying the many characters, moods, and interactions, pulling one scene into the next. The music was used to create both comedic and dramatic atmospheres, depending on the context. For instance, Donna Elvira’s aria was high, long, and trailing, helping to convey her longing for her seducer. Leporello’s solo was light and fast paced, with a lively, storytelling melody –adding to the humor of his aria. The Comendator’s arrival was booming and dramatic, with slow, deep and thundering tones to convey his dooming message to Don Giovanni. Romance, comedy, bitterness, sadness, and misfortune were all conveyed through the music, with its varying pace, harmonies, and range. Mozart used a very dynamic approach in his compositions to make them carry the quickly shifting moods of the story.
I really enjoyed seeing an opera to contrast the many contemporary performances that we saw throughout the semester. I like that it was in many ways over-the-top and impersonal to the audience because it was more of a spectacle. Rather than trying to engage the audience or make us experience some kind of complex emotion or message, its purpose was simply to entertain. And because it is older, there were more standards that it had to conform to. But this is not necessarily a bad thing. Its structure, its drama, it flamboyant costumes and its grandiose music created a kind of complete experience that I really enjoyed. Sure, I wasn’t emotionally or intellectually engaged, but the opera presented a great story in a magnificent setting with lavish visual and audio accompaniment that are interesting to take in and be overwhelmed by. It is always great to see something different to find an appreciation for the captivating elements of each unique kind of performance we saw.