MOZART’s opera Don Giovanni, which was performed at Venue Cymru last week, is a moral tale relevant today. The clue is in the full title: Don Giovanni the Libertine Punished.

This production by the Welsh National Opera Company underscores the relevance of this 18th century tale based on the legends of Don Juan, a fictional libertine and seducer. It brings together comedy, melodrama, and some gloriously romantic music.

It opens with Don Giovanni escaping from Donna Anna after trying to seduce her. He is caught and rebuked by her father the Commendatore, whom Giovanni kills in a scuffle. At the same time Donna Elvira, who believes Giovanni to be her husband, is searching for him.

He escapes Elvira, leaving her with his manservant Leporello, who tells her Giovanni is not worthy of her love and recounts his master’s lengthy list of conquests, country by country, including the memorable (immortal) and wildly fanciful line: “But in Spain already 1,003”.

Don Giovanni then attempts to seduce the peasant girl, Zerlina, on her wedding day. However this ends with a fight with her husband to be, Maesetto, in a churchyard where the Commendatore is buried under a marble statue of himself.

Later the statue chillingly comes to life and offers Giovanni the chance of redemption if he repents. This he refuses, then facing the appalling consequences of his actions, as the ice cold statue grips him in a terror tingling moment before dragging him down into the fiery pit.

Gavin Ring portrays the outrageously amoral Don Giovanni with panache, capturing his duplicitous cruelty. He personifies the character of a man hell bent on abusing his wealth and power. His costume of long coat and trousers in white, the colour of innocence, was nicely ironic for such a scoundrel.

David Stout’s Leperello epitomises the easily bought loyalty of a manservant, but still retaining a shred of decency by trying to warn Donna Elvira of his master’s unfaithfulness.

Zerlina’s confusion, torn between her loyalty to Maesetto, and the attraction of the rich and sophisticated Giovanni, is skilfully illustrated by Katie Bray.

All in all the production, much enjoyed by the Venue Cymru audience, was a cautionary and moral tale, making the point that misdeeds will catch one up, which has a certain topical resonance.