As the saying goes, “If you haven’t seen Don Giovanni, you haven’t been to Prague!” It would be a shame to miss this operatic masterpiece composed by Mozart.
Don Giovanni is so special to Prague as this opera was premiered in Prague in 1787 and was conducted by Mozart himself at the Prague Estates Theatre. As I’m intrigued by the Czech marionettes, I decided to see a special verion of Don Giovanni at the National Marionette Theatre (Žatecká 1, Prague 1) presented in the original Italian librettot.
In this unique version, you will first see a weird marionette Mozart appear on the stage and conduct an imaginery orchestra. After the overture, some classical marionettes dressed in authentic period costumes will appear and move haltingly to act out the classic scenes. The marionette Mozart will appear again in between acts. It is hilarious to see the marionette Mozart get drunk, fall asleep and even knock his stupid head on the edge of the orchestra pit.
I thought puppeteers only manipulate the marionettes indirectly by the use of strings and rods behind the backdrop, but after the show I realize that they are deeply ‘attached’ with their marionettes. I am completely dazzled by the magic of marionettes. Awesome!
I have got one more important tip for those who are going to see this marionette show. Sitting in the first row isn’t a good idea unless you want to get wet!
Theatre Entrance
Marionette Mozart
Marionette Performance at National Marionette Theatre
