In celebration of the theatre's 60th birthday, Joburg Theatre stages a spectacular new production of Mozart's classic "opera buffa" (or comic opera) Don Giovanni. For this major celebratory show, the theatre has pulled out all the stops with an international cast of performers that includes opera singers from Germany, the US, Portugal and of course South Africa, accompanied by a full symphony orchestra and dazzling sets.

Performing in the title role is American operatic bass-baritone Kevin Short, who also recently took to the stage in the Metropolitan Opera's production of Porgy and Bess. Singing the role of Don Ottavio is South African-born tenor Musa Nkuna, who is also an artistic consultant on this production. Completing a blockbuster operatic evening the musical accompaniment comes courtesy of the Johannesburg Philharmonic Orchestra joined by the Gauteng Choristers and pianist Juan Burgers and conducted by German conductor, Johannes Stert.

Mozart's opera Don Giovanni is based on the legend of the fictional philanderer and seducer Don Juan. Premiered in 1787 it has been an audience favourite ever since.

Mozart described Don Giovanni as an opera buffa, a play that effortlessly combines comedy, melodrama and supernatural elements. Don Giovanni is a figuratively and literally dark comedy-drama. Lots of scenes in the story take place at night or within darkened rooms or courtyards. With this in mind director Christoph Dammann and artistic consultant, Musa Nkuna have created a stage set and production design that is inspired by 1950s film noir, making use of low-key lighting, strong light-dark contracts and the occasional splash of bold colour. We suggest you book your tickets soonest as these are going to fly.