World Premiere of THE DA PONTE PROJECT: MAKING MOZART to Play State Opera Studio, Oct 20

1785 saw the premiere of The Marriage of Figaro and 1791 the French Revolution. These two events are linked by the greatest creative partnership in the world of opera. 'The da Ponte Project: Making Mozart' brings together three of the country's leading singers, a superb accompanist and an opera critic to show it happened.

Ewart Shaw is an Adelaide critic and broadcaster heard regularly on 5EBI FM and Radio Adelaide. Ewart explained how da Ponte Project - Making Mozart came about: "I'd been a great admirer of Gisele Blanchard when she was a student and on her return, with her husband Mario Bellanova and their children I compered a concert for them in Pilgrim Church. Earlier this year Mario phoned me and invited me to work with them on a project which has become this new show.

"They wanted to share their love of Mozart's operas, but with a little theatrical narrative, exploring some of the themes common to the three great operas The Marriage of Figaro, Cosi Fan tutte and Don Giovanni.There are the conflicts between servants and masters, husbands and wives, but there are also disguises, veils, plots and a pervading sadness, almost cynicism about the permanence of love. As I looked closer at the environment in which the opera were written, it became clear that they were as revolutionary in their day, shocking even, as a response to the political unrest in Europe that led shortly afterwards to the French revolution.

"The other common thread was the librettist, Lorenzo da Ponte. He persuaded Mozart to set an adaptation of a scandalous, indeed banned, play by the French writer Beaumarchais, but then created the morally ambiguous Cosi Fan tutte, but his masterwork is Don Giovanni, in which we see a highly respected aristocrat revealed as a rapist and murderer. Even wrapped in the beauties of Mozart's music, the sharp social commentary of da Ponte's writing is unmistakable.

"I wanted to find out more about this remarkable man, born a Jew in the Venetian ghetto, Catholic convert ordained as a priest, a poet a lover and a writer. So as Mario, Gisele, and Catriona Barr with pianist Jamie c*ckexplored the music, I came up with the additional dialogue'.

'In da Ponte's mind, he is the other genius in the creative process, cajoling Mozart into politically and socially dangerous themes."

The world premiere performance of this sparkling musical entertainment will take place in the State Opera Studio, Marion Road Netley with the venue and costumes lent by the State Opera of South Australia.

The da Ponte Project: Making Mozart is at 3 pm on Sunday October 20th. Tickets are $20 and $15 concession through Dramatix.com.au.

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