Hampton Roads, Richmond, Fairfax, VA (September 17, 2024) – Virginia Opera is thrilled to announce the opening of its highly anticipated 50th Anniversary Season with a dynamic new production of Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart’s Don Giovanni. The opera will premiere at Norfolk’s Harrison Opera House on October 4 and 6, followed by performances at Richmond’s Dominion Energy Center on October 12 and 13.
This production, conducted by Virginia Opera’s Artistic Director and Chief Conductor Adam Turner and directed by Kyle Lang, promises to deliver a fresh and thrilling take on Mozart’s iconic work. Turner, who has meticulously crafted the season to celebrate the company’s 50-year legacy, shares his excitement: “While Mozart’s iconic and enduring Don Giovanni was selected to kick off Virginia Opera’s 50th Anniversary, there’s not necessarily any hidden message behind its season-opening positioning. In crafting the big picture of this commemorative season, we wanted to showcase our strengths, featuring some of opera’s freshest talents and displaying the rich diversity of artistic accomplishment over our 50 years of producing opera in the Commonwealth. Mozart’s Don Giovanni is a fixture in that 50-year legacy, as a top-10 title now seeing its seventh appearance on our stages, and what better way to open a celebratory season than with opera’s original rockstar bad boy! Each of the singers cast by Artistic Director & Chief Conductor Adam Turner were handpicked for their exceptional talents of vocality and dramatic charisma. With the Virginia Symphony Orchestra placed on stage and highly integrated into the performance, the performers will feel even closer to audiences, creating an intensely thrilling experience. No matter what, audiences are in for a rollercoaster ride of emotions when it comes to the Don – you’ll fall for him, be consumed by intense anger, then turn around and feel sorry for him, and after he’s left you completely heartbroken, you’ll ultimately enjoy seeing him get his comeuppance. What better way to kick off the 50th Anniversary Season than with an operatic rockstar rollercoaster ride!”
Kyle Lang, who has brought several successful productions to Virginia Opera’s stage, including The Elixir of Love (2019), Cinderella (2020), The Marriage of Figaro (2022), and The Pirates of Penzance (2022), will lend his directorial vision to this production of Don Giovanni. Lang’s unique approach to storytelling is sure to bring new life to this timeless tale of seduction and downfall. “Often thought of as the bad boy of opera, I thought about how Don Giovanni could translate into the modern world. I kept coming back to contemporary celebrities who went rouge, and then started to think of rock concert lighting as an architectural base, with modern fashion figuring in as self-expression for each character. Thinking through the psychology of these characters, I began to draw comparisons to the celebrities of today and their very public struggles and personal demons. If you’re seeing it for the first time, it’s about the plot, but if you’re a connoisseur, it’s about offering new perspectives. Either way, Giovanni’s rock-and-roll spirit will provide a fantastic night at the opera!”
The cast of Don Giovanni is headlined by baritone Ethan Vincent, making his Virginia Opera mainstage debut as the notorious title character. Celebrated for his “compelling stage presence” by the Chicago Tribune and hailed as a “rising star” by the Philadelphia Inquirer, Ethan Vincent is one of the most exciting young baritones of his generation. Soprano Alexandra Loutsion returns to the Virginia Opera stage as Donna Elvira, following her critically-acclaimed performances as Brünnhilde in The Valkyrie (2022) and Siegfried (2023). Former Herndon Foundation Emerging Artist, soprano Symone Harcum, takes on the role of Donna Anna, having made her mainstage debut in Cinderella (2020) and last appearing as the Countess in The Marriage of Figaro (2022). Bass-baritone Wm. Clay Thompson also makes his Virginia Opera mainstage debut as Leporello, with bass Ricardo Lugo playing the Commendatore, following his roles in Das Rheingold (2021), La Bohème (2021), The Valkyrie (2022), and Siegfried (2023). Former Herndon Foundation Emerging Artist Jordan Costa returns to the mainstage portraying the role of Don Ottavio, while current Emerging Artists Chase Sanders and Patrick Wilhelm will perform the roles of Zerlina and Masetto, respectively.
With the Virginia Symphony Orchestra on stage and fully integrated into the performance, this production of Don Giovanni is set to be a visually and musically immersive experience, offering audiences an unforgettable journey through Mozart’s masterpiece.
Tickets for Don Giovanni and Virginia Opera’s 50th Anniversary Season are now available for purchase. For more information, visit www.vaopera.org or contact the Virginia Opera Box Office at 866-673-7282.
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About Virginia Opera
Virginia Opera, the official opera company of the Commonwealth of Virginia, is one of the finest regional opera companies in the nation and is the only company to perform regularly in three separate main stage venues: the Harrison Opera House in Norfolk, the Carpenter Theatre at the Dominion Energy Center in Richmond, and Center for the Arts at George Mason University in Fairfax. Organized in 1974, Virginia Opera is respected nationwide for the identification and presentation of the finest young artists, for the musical and dramatic integrity of its productions, and for the ingenuity and variety of its education and outreach programs.
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