Don Giovanni `unredeemable’ in Ivo van Hove’s US opera debut
By MIKE SILVERMAN
Associated Press
Belgian director Ivo van Hove is making his U.S. opera debut with a dark take on “Don Giovanni” at the Metropolitan Opera. Van Hove portrays the Don not as a charming if amoral rake but as a predator and killer. The Met’s general manager, Peter Gelb, thinks that depicting the Don as a sociopath might surprise audiences who are used to a somewhat more appealing portrayal. But he thinks it will resonate in the times in which we live. The production marks van Hove’s U.S. debut directing opera. It opens Friday, May 5.