Don Giovanni

At once a flamboyant hero and a mediocre imposter, Don Giovanni fascinates as much as he questions. Romantic icon of emancipation or puppet of a thirst beyond his control? Free, really? Or condemned to endless wandering, where every adventure ends in disappointment?

At a time when the future of Europe seemed terribly uncertain, Mozart's Don Giovanni explored the intoxication of disorder and desire, composing an elusive opera that evades, feints and reappears where we least expect it. His dark masterpiece is a ball danced on the edge of a volcano: dazzling and tragic, effervescent and breathless, it smashes laughter on the altar of tragedy, electrifies the auditorium and strikes down certainties.

In his staging, Frédéric Roels embraces this vertigo and turns his theater into a place of irresolution. Nothing is fixed, everything wavers. Landmarks dissolve, the future is still in search, and in this hesitation arises the ultimate question: to succumb to the abyss, or to choose one's own destiny?

Sung in Italian, with French surtitles. Running time: 3 hours.

Free screening on giant screen on Friday, October 10, 8pm, Place St Didier, Avignon.

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