“Don Giovanni” by Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart

Paperback libretto with side-by-side translation

Read Don Giovanni with the original libretto and a clear English translation printed on facing pages.

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Premiere / date of written: 29 October 1787

Don Giovanni (K. 527; complete title: Il dissoluto punito, ossia il Don Giovanni, literally The Rake Punished, or Don Giovanni) is an opera in two acts with music by Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart and Italian libretto by Lorenzo Da Ponte. It is based on the legends of Don Juan, a fictional libertine and seducer. It was premiered by the Prague Italian opera at the Teatro di Praga (now called the Estates Theatre) on October 29, 1787. Da Ponte's libretto was billed like many of its time as dramma giocoso, a term that denotes a mixing of serious and comic action. Mozart entered the work into his catalogue as an "opera buffa". Although sometimes classified as comic, it blends comedy, melodrama and supernatural elements.
A staple of the standard operatic repertoire, Don Giovanni is currently tenth on the Operabase list of the most-performed operas worldwide. It has also proved a fruitful subject for writers and philosophers.

Libretti

#	Language	Authors
1	Italian	Lorenzo Da Ponte
2	German	Eckhardt van den Hoogen
3	English
4	French	Michel Roubinet

original libretto
line-by-line of the original libretto

History

• 1787 October 28 — Mozart reportedly pulled an all-nighter to complete the overture to Don Giovanni in Prague, the night before the premiere.

Images

Printed Editions

Year	Edition	Publisher	Buy
2024	Don Giovanni: Opera Libretto with Italian–English Translation	DM’s Opera Series

Audio recordings

Year	Cast	Conductor, Opera chorus and orchestra	Label, Comment	Buy
1955	Don Giovanni — Cesare Siepi, Leporello — Fernando Corena, Donna Anna — Suzanne Danco, Don Ottavio — Anton Dermota, Donna Elvira — Lisa Della Casa, Zerlina — Hilde Gueden, Masetto — Walter Berry, Commendatore — Kurt Böhme	Josef Krips Wiener Philharmoniker, Wiener Staatsopernchor	CD: Decca Heritage Masters Cat: 478 1389	$19.42
1959	Don Giovanni — Eberhard Wächter, Leporello — Giuseppe Taddei, Donna Anna — Joan Sutherland, Don Ottavio — Luigi Alva, Donna Elvira — Elisabeth Schwarzkopf, Zerlina — Graziella Sciutti, Masetto — Piero Cappuccilli, Commendatore — Gottlob Frick	Carlo Maria Giulini Philharmonia Orchestra	CD: EMI Classics Cat: 747260-8	$31.59
1977	Don Giovanni — Sherrill Milnes, Leporello — Walter Berry, Donna Anna — Anna Tomowa-Sintow, Don Ottavio — Peter Schreier, Donna Elvira — Teresa Å»ylis-Gara, Zerlina — Edith Mathis, Masetto — Dale Duesing, Commendatore — John Macurdy	Karl Böhm Wiener Philharmoniker, Wiener Staatsopernchor	CD: Deutsche Grammophon Cat: DG 477 5655	$35.99
1985	Don Giovanni — Samuel Ramey, Leporello — Ferruccio Furlanetto, Donna Anna — Anna Tomowa-Sintow, Don Ottavio — Gösta Winbergh, Donna Elvira — Agnes Baltsa, Zerlina — Kathleen Battle, Masetto — Alexander Malta, Commendatore — Paata Burchuladze	Herbert von Karajan Berlin Philharmonic	CD: Deutsche Grammophon DG DG 419 179-2	$20.49
1997	Don Giovanni — Bryn Terfel, Leporello — Michele Pertusi, Donna Anna — Renée Fleming, Don Ottavio — Herbert Lippert, Donna Elvira — Ann Murray, Zerlina — Monica Groop, Masetto — Roberto Scaltriti, Commendatore — Mario Luperi	Sir Georg Solti London Philharmonic	CD: London Cat: 455 500-2	$11.44

Video recordings

Year	Cast	Conductor, Opera chorus and orchestra, Director	Label, Comment	Buy
1979	Don Giovanni — Ruggero Raimondi, Leporello — José van Dam Donna Anna — Edda Moser, Don Ottavio — Kenneth Riegel, Donna Elvira — Kiri Te Kanawa, Zerlina — Teresa Berganza, Masetto — Malcolm King, Commendatore — John McCurdy	Lorin Maazel Paris Opera Orchestra and Chorus Joseph Losey	DVD: Second Sight Cat: 2NDVD 3132; Audio CD: Sony Masterworks Opera Cat: 82876 87758-2
2011	Don Giovanni — Bryn Terfel, Leporello — Peter Mattei, Donna Anna — Anna Netrebko, Don Ottavio — Giuseppe Filianoti, Donna Elvira — Barbara Frittoli, Zerlina — Anna Prohaska, Masetto — Stefan Kocan, Commendatore — Kwanchul Youn	Daniel Barenboim La Scala Orchestra and Chorus, Milan Robert Carsen	Deutsche Grammophon 0440 073 5218 2 2 DVD Videos GH2	$39.00

External links

• Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia