Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart was a composer who changed the world of music dramatically. One of his most famous operas, Don Giovanni was a pleasure to see, even though it was very long. After reading the libretto, and after viewing the opera in real life, I can say that I feel that Don Giovanni was a perfect blend of a tragedy and a comedy. A tragedy in literature is defined as a a “literary and particularly a dramatic presentation of serious actions in which the chief character has a disastrous fate.” This means that a protagonist will have a characteristic that causes his/her downfall. Don Giovanni is a tragedy in a sense that Don Giovanni’s womanizing ways caused his downfall.
Don Giovanni can also be considered a comedy because of Leporello. He was the main comedic character and I found it extremely funny during his song about all the women Don Giovanni played.

As said during class, there was a class difference shown in the libretto. It was pointed out that all the higher class characters contained “Don/Donna” in front of their name, such as Don Giovanni, Donna Anna, Dona Elvira, and Don Octavio. All the lower class characters did not contain anything, such as Leporello, Zerlina and Masseto. We also talked about how the nobility had a right over their slaves and that could have represented a class difference as well.

I felt that the music really enhanced the  story. I believe Mozart created something that did not become the story, but helped guide the story. During the “funny” parts, the music was extremely light and melodious and for me, it helped create an atmosphere that enhanced the way the story moved. The scene with the Commendatore at the end was extremely dramatic and dark, and the music reflected that as well. There was never a time where I felt that the music told the story; to me the music helped create an atmosphere which guided the plot.

Don  Giovanni was the first opera I saw in my life. Although the opera was long and there were times when I wanted to just close my eyes, I thought it was extremely interesting. I also believe that reading the libretto before viewing the opera really helped. I was able to anticipate what was going to happen and I was able to fully understand the story. Don Giovanni was different from the other performances we watched, which mostly revolved around dance. In dance, the movement to the music told a story and in the opera, the music helped to enhance the story.  The other performances were also very contemporary and unique and a classic like Don Giovanni was a great contrast to that. My two favorite shows we’ve seen this semester were Don Giovanni and Fall for Dance. In comparing all the performances I’ve seen, I think that I enjoy watching shows that are less contemporary and more classic and standard even though I enjoyed having the experience of viewing all of them.