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Andrew Bell and Ashley Galvani Bell fondly recall their summer retreats to Southampton.The siblings would spend hours absorbed in a world of make-believe in the depths of their grandparents’ basement. Equipped with a chest of costumes and makeshift stage—complete with a curtain installed by their father—they would perform original plays. They continue to collaborate to this very day, but now on much a bigger stage.
The siblings are key players in Divaria Productions’ latest production, “Don Giovanni in New York,” scheduled for a one-night-only performance at Bay Street Theater in Sag Harbor on Saturday, September 22, at 8 p.m.
The show is a hybrid of theater and opera, explained the siblings. While the show features many selections from Mozart’s original opera “Don Giovanni,” it primarily explores the story of Lorenzo Da Ponte, the opera’s infamous librettist, and how he brought the piece to New York. Essentially, it is an opera within a play.
Mr. Bell—now working behind the scenes in theater, film and television—penned the libretto of the show, which features Ms. Galvani Bell, a professionally trained soprano.
“We like to think bringing this opera to the Hamptons nears Da Ponte’s passion to bring opera to New York and to the New World,” Ms. Galvani Bell said.
The production premiered in the very same venue in which the original “Don Giovanni” debuted in Manhattan on the very same night—May 23—exactly 200 years later.
On why Da Ponte is the focus of the show, Mr. Bell said he was always fascinated by him and his truly bizarre life.
“He’s one of these colorful characters in history who sort of took his bizarre life experiences, threw it into his art,” he explained. “In many ways, he’s one of these kind of characters whose life is almost more interesting than their art, which says a lot for someone who is already iconic for their achievements as a writer.”
Through extensive historical research, the siblings ultimately discovered Da Ponte’s life was characterized by reinvention. Born Jewish in Ceneda, Italy—outside of Venice—he converted to Catholicism in order to get a better education and eventually attended a seminary. Although he did eventually become a priest, his flighty nature overpowered any religious ambitions and he was propelled into a life of writing, literary societies, befriending the likes of Casanova and fooling around with as many women as he could, Ms. Galvani Bell said.
His life in America continued to be a journey of diversions, she explained. He went from working as a grocer to opening a bookstore to becoming the first professor of Italian at Columbia University. But, as the play reiterates, his greatest achievement remains bringing opera to America.
While the amount of content—between the opera and its backstory—is extensive, Mr. Bell said he tried to create a balance resulting in an accessible piece of theater for people with no familiarity with Da Ponte or opera in general.
“I kind of tried to access this through the lens of someone who is not that invested in the complexity of the story, and the excitement of Da Ponte himself and the other characters,” Mr. Bell said.
With this meta approach, the cast is naturally divided into two companies: three actors playing the real-life characters of Da Ponte, Manuel Garcia and Maria Malibran, and seven trained opera singers playing the main roles in “Don Giovanni.”
Incorporating local talent, the production features the Choral Society of the Hamptons as the opera portion’s chorus. Additionally, it also features a select group of 12- to 15-year-olds currently studying opera with Ms. Galvani Bell.
“They’ve never been exposed to opera before,” she said. “They’re really excited to be part of the show.”
This excitement is shared among the entire cast and crew as well as the Bay Street production team, Mr. Bell said. He noted that the theater has been exceedingly generous over the last two years allowing Divaria Productions to share its works with the East End.
“It’s such an incredible organization,” he said. “We’re grateful they’re helping us bring live opera to the Hamptons because there is definitely a demand for it and there aren’t many opportunities for people to experience it live on stage.”
While opera remains a niche in today’s world, the two siblings agreed that Da Ponte’s story and the opera he created are more timely than ever.
“This work will help provide an emotional escape, but also shed light on the climate we’re in,” Mr. Bell said, noting that Don Giovanni presents an extremely divisive, yet intriguing character not unlike some of today’s public figures.
However, at its core—Ms. Galvani Bell said the piece inspires self-reflection.
“It’s something that a lot of people can relate to in terms of looking back on your own lives or having a hard time or being okay with things you’ve done in the past—looking back at the person you were and the person you’ve become,” she said.
“Don Giovanni in New York” will be presented on Saturday, September 22, at 8 p.m. at Bay Street Theater in Sag Harbor. Tickets are $25, $35 and $50. Call 631-725-9500 or visit baystreet.org.
on Sep 18, 2018