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How did the success of The Marriage of Figaro in Prague lead to Don Giovanni?
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Don Giovanni
Illustration (c. 1914) of a scene from Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart's opera Don Giovanni (1787), in which Don Giovanni attempts to seduce Zerlina.
While The Marriage of Figaro achieved only modest success in Vienna, it enjoyed outstanding popularity in Prague. Following its favorable reception there, Mozart traveled to the city in January 1787 to attend performances and engage with local patrons and musicians.
Encouraged by the opera's success and the warm welcome he received, the director of the Prague theatre invited Mozart to compose a new work specifically for the city. Mozart accepted this operatic commission, which resulted in the creation of Don Giovanni. The opera premiered at the National Theatre in Prague on October 29, 1787, and was warmly received by the public.12