Don Giovanni (2023)

Following the success of *The Marriage of Figaro*, the Prague Opera asked Mozart to compose a new opera. Mozart and Da Ponte decided on a story that had recently resonated with audiences in Venice: a *Don Giovanni* composed by Giuseppe Gazzaniga. Building on the popular theme of the Seville adventurer, a character prominent in theatre since the mid-17th century – notably in Molière’s plays and a ballet by Gluck – Da Ponte centered the opera on the libertine Don Juan. Da Ponte likely drew inspiration from his friend Casanova, who even contributed to Act 2, Scene 9, and attended the opera's premiere in Prague.