The audiovisual recreation of operas filmed in theaters: an analysis of Don Giovanni by W. A. Mozart

Abstract

This article analyzes select opera films produced during the 20th and 21st centuries by international opera houses in order to determine whether, when the diegesis of these films is recreated, there is also an attempt made for the films to reflect the conventions of operatic performance. We performed content analysis of the end of the first act in 29 filmed versions of the opera Don Giovanni by W.A. Mozart by evaluating 44 variables related to three categories that are central to translating the original story to the new audiovisual discourse: recreation of time and space and use of scenery. The main results reveal that in translating Don Giovanni to audiovisual media, the films continue to be influenced by the institutional conventions of operatic theater. In relying on the original performance, these films, even in the 21st century, do not exhibit full narrative autonomy. Our article proposes several ways to better adapt—from a cinematographic perspective—these scenic representations based on elements such as depth of field or scenery, without the need for greater resources than those already available to opera houses.