“You’ll never truly know me,” says the world-famous seducer, and indeed: Don Giovanni’s character has remained unfathomable and endlessly captivating for centuries. Should we sympathise with him? Or condemn him?

Perhaps both? He is a complex and fascinating figure, who, with Lorenzo Da Ponte’s libretto and Mozart’s music, presents an eternal and rewarding challenge for directors. This is not the first time Iván Fischer has had dealings with this opera: as both a conductor and director, he is a Don Giovanni expert.

The cast is as spectacular as ever, and features singers from the world’s top opera houses, including some names and voices already familiar to the Budapest Festival Orchestra audience.

Place: National Concert Hall Budapest

Address: 1095 Budapest, Komor Marcell utca 1.