Merola Opera Program to Screen DON GIOVANNI, 1/25

The Merola Opera Program and the San Francisco Public Library Main Branch present Merola Goes to the Movies, the free, opera-on-film series.

Mozart's legendary opera Don Giovanni will be screened on Sunday, January 25 at 1 pm in the Koret Auditorium of the San Francisco Public Library Main Branch (100 Larkin Street). Admission is free.

Each film is preceded by a short talk by a Merola representative, who will give an insider's look at the opera and interesting facts about the making of the film.

With more than 2,000 romantic conquests, Don Giovanni lives life in the fast lane until a mysterious meeting with a statue begins his downward spiral. From overture to epilogue, this opera is considered by many to be Mozart's greatest work, filled with sweeping melodies and a stirring finale that will leave you trapped between heaven and hell. Thomas Hampson (Merola 1980 alum) leads a stellar cast of this contemporary-set version from the 2006 Salzburg Festival.

The cast also includes Christine Schäfer, Melanie Diener, Ildebrando D'Arcangelo, Isabel Bayrakdarian and others.

Admission is free. Seating is on a first-come, first-served basis.

Guests are welcome to enter a free drawing where you can win Merola Opera Program prizes.

For 58 years, the Merola Opera Program has been regarded as the foremost opera training program for aspiring singers, coaches and stage directors. As the cornerstone of San Francisco Opera's training and performance programs for promising young artists, Merola has served as a proving ground for hundreds of artists, including Ruth Ann Swenson , Deborah Voigt , Anna Netrebko, Patricia Racette, Sylvia McNair, Thomas Hampson, Carol Vaness, Joyce DiDonato, Susan Graham, and Dolora Zajick among many others.