23 Sept-2 Oct 2010. 27 world premieres (of which 18 are commissioned by La Biennale), 15 Italian premieres, 77 composers, 31 events including concerts, installations, audio-visual performances, choral music as well as workshops, seminars, meetings throughout the entire ten-day programme make up this important event. The subtitle this year is Don Giovanni and the man of stone, and the director is Luca Francesconi. In continuity with the commitment of the Venice Biennale to the younger generations, this festival is a stage for prestigious groups but also for young ensembles and composers. Don Giovanni a Venezia, which opens the festival, is a totally new opera-installation conceived by Luca Francesconi and consists of a number of events in courtyards, loggias and the indoor spaces of ancient Venetian buildings. Along with this experimental opera, which challenges our habits of perception, the programme includes other episodes to stimulate the public