Can you sacrifice one of the most emblematic operatic works on the altar of modernism and creativity?

The answer is yes, according to Elke Neidhart who, last night, succeeded in achieving what may be considered a disastrous production of Mozart’s Don Giovanni, currently performed at the Sydney Opera House.

Located in modern Seville, Don Giovanni is portrayed as a drug baron ruling his neighbourhood with an iron grip. This enables him to be introduced into the best circles of the intelligentsia, and to indulge in a frenzy of feminine conquests and drug feasts (he snorts at least 12 lines of coke along the performance). However, in what may be considered an act of appeasement, the remaining characters retain much of their original features.

The overall concept is different, innovative, and even appealing. But in her attempt to inject new blood into a creation of over 200 years, the director leads us into confusion, unnecessary wedge scenes, and even boredom. Seville, the colourful and vibrant city of Andalusia, is transformed into a gigantic mausoleum of black and grey concrete walls, largely inspired by the comics of Enki Bilal. The ensemble is so oppressive that the singers appear reduced to small dwarfs lost in a void.

Each solo, duet, trio, quartet, and quintet are defiled individually, turned into a series of ludicrous situations like the Commendatore confined to a wheelchair that leaves him no obvious chance of survival against a lively young Don Giovanni. Let us set aside Donna Anna giving Leporello oral sex while he recounts his master’s conquests. Or the same Leporello warming a can of beans on a candle before snorting an entire package of coke. And in a final stroke, the Commendatore’s walking statue substituted by a giant set of projectors, probably inspired by some of Vasarely’s works.

We laugh. We laugh because we get bored. We get bored because there is no emotion going on all the way. While, as usual, the acting is stunning (one of the signatures of the Sydney Opera House), the cast, instead of being breathtaking, is obviously out of breath after 10 performances. Andrew Schroeder (Don Giovanni) gets lost in his voice, provided you manage to hear it. Catherine Carby (Donna Elvira) has used so much energy in her “blowing” jobs that she must hasten her vocals to avoid ending up breathless, leaving the orchestra in disarray. The other performers are barely average; they sing well, just well.

Amidst the chaos, Kate Ladner (Donna Anna) is the only one to take the lead with her vibrant tones. But despite her talented coloratura voice, she still manages to ruin her most important solo scene by squeaking her vocals.

This is not a Mozartian cast. These young singers, although full of potential, are not suited to that performance. After 3 hours, we reach the overdose (of cocaine) and get to a point where we just want their ordeal (and ours) to end fast. Then it finally happens in a huge burst of powerful projectors, blinding you for several minutes. Time for the audience to leave. After all, Don Giovanni has gone to Hell, so should you!

Don Giovanni by Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart, at the Sydney Opera House, until 10/09/2008