Discover Don Giovanni

This resource is for teachers, pupils at Key Stages 2 and 3 and anyone interested in exploring Mozart’s opera Don Giovanni.

Please choose and adapt this material for your needs. Browse sections on the Don Giovanni story, the characters, themes, history, music, composer, sources, production and design. Each section features ideas for classroom activities.

The Characters
The Story
Mozart and Don Giovanni
Explore Don Giovanni
Learning Activities
Glossary 

Information for teachers

Preparing for a matinee

Attending a schools’ matinee is exciting, especially if it is a first visit. We encourage an honest and lively response but it’s worth preparing students for the opera experience and what they can expect to do, see and hear.

During the performance

Sometimes there may seem to be not much happening onstage but the orchestra will still be playing. Prepare students for these moments and ask them to listen attentively throughout. All our artists and musicians, however, welcome an enthusiastic round of applause at the end of a performance!

Opera as experience

Opera is a rich fusion of art forms. Listening without the visual element or focusing on design independently of the music and drama are valid approaches in raising students’ awareness but can’t convey the sensation of opera, an experience which is more than the sum of its parts.