Mozart in Manhattan

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Mozart in Manhattan is a one act musical theatre work written by Scott Lawton (music) and Olaf Strieb (text). It was produced by the Gandersheimer Domfestspiele in July of 2005. It dramatizes two stations in the life of Lorenzo Da Ponte: a) his beginnings as an Italian teacher in 1809 following being "discovered" by Clement Clarke Moore at Riley's Bookstore on Broadway, and b) the euphoric celebration following the American premiere of "Don Giovanni" on March 23, 1826.

In the Gandersheim program notes, the authors categorize the work as an "Opernkrimi", or an "operatic detective story". Prominent themes are previously unknown aspects of Da Ponte's relationship with Mozart, events leading to the composer's death and Da Ponte's own efforts to promote Mozart's work in New York. A recurrent thread is the disparity between Da Ponte's fame as Mozart's opera librettist in Vienna and his relative anonymity and poverty in the decades which followed.

It is a work for two persons: Lorenzo da Ponte (first at 58 and later at 76 years of age) and a younger student named Maria who first learns Italian at his "Academy for Young Ladies", and who later then reappears at his house to pay her respects following the "Don Giovanni" premiere.

The story draws on material from the memoirs of Da Ponte and Casanova. The musical score employs ragtime, gospel, jazz and classical styles. The overture is a reworking of themes from "Don Giovanni" in klezmer and tango styles. Most of the work is through-composed. The orchestration consists of piano, accordion and contrabass. Mozart themes are frequently quoted when Da Ponte refers to his years of collaboration as opera librettist in Vienna.

Mozart in Manhattan played for nine sold-out performances in the Bad Gandersheim Kurhaus from July 6 to August 5, 2005 and was presented in the Berlin Tertianum in März, 2006.

Lorenzo Da Ponte was played by Peter Anger and Maria was played by Christin Zacher.