The two-hour performance by San Diego Ballet filled the weekend with spectacular beauty and made audiences feel like they were in the middle of medieval Spain. Don Juan, second to none in the league of Casanova, begins his journey from the house of a Spanish lord and wanders the world seducing every woman who catches his eye.
This performance is more in keeping with Lord Byron’s epic than the traditional Mozart opera Don Giovanni. Compared to Mozart’s combination of characters from opera seria (a noble, serious style) and opera buffa (comic style), “The Love of Don Juan” focuses on more comedic incidents and accidents. Focused.
Don Juan is a sociable and cheerful man towards women. He sometimes makes enemies, such as the partners of girls he flirts with. But he’s not the biggest target for revenge. He is simply portrayed as someone who enjoys his life, but only with women. Although this seems quite provocative, his affected demeanor was portrayed as a cute bluff. Marshall Whiteley, who played Don Juan, skillfully portrayed Don Juan’s lightness with his mischievous face and exaggerated actions.
A scene with famous lines from the opera. “Look, this thick little book has all the names of his lovers. …640 in Italy. 231 in Germany. … Already 1,003 in Spain. “Little children are always charming,” unfolds through Acts 1 and 2, following in Don Juan’s footsteps. He attacks all the market peddlers, gypsies, etc. The stage was packed with gorgeous choreography, gorgeous costumes, and props.
The story of Don Juan, floating, in mortal danger, a stranger in a strange land, evoked the feeling of reading The Long Journey of Mark Twain or Jules Verne. The epic story of Don Juan’s travels simultaneously expressed the innocent adventures of his childhood and his lewd desires with women. In particular, the elegant group dance of the ballerinas in red dresses and the rich sound of the Spanish guitar in the second act captivated both Don Juan and the audience.
The chemistry between San Diego Ballet couple Stephanie Maiorano and Tonatiu Gomez was evident in the third act. The Peasant Bride (one of Maiorano’s roles) is the one who rejects Don Juan’s temptations and remains faithful to the groom Gomez. Their love dance lit up the stage and their smiles seemed heartfelt. Both Maiorano and Gomez have several different roles throughout their performances, so it is Gomez who stabs Maiorano when he is a gypsy in the first act. But as it turns out, these two finally get married when they are farmers.
“I never thought we would revive Don Juan, because Javier Velasco (choreographer) created this work for Max Chernichev (former dancer), who is a very special dancer. Because I created it,” Maiorano said in a previous interview. But Whiteley discovered Don Juan with his sometimes daring, sometimes moving dancing. As Maiorano mentioned in a previous interview, Gomez’s jump height was outstanding, but Maiorano also perfectly embodied the seven roles throughout the three acts. Please look forward to the San Diego Ballet’s next performance.