Yet Mr. Carsen, in a refreshing departure from grim productions depicting Don Giovanni as a serial rapist, takes a generally positive view of the mythical character.
The indicators are grim: Cement production has reached its lowest level since the 1960s.
Mr. Levine was on the podium when the Met's spare, grim Mark Lamos production — with sets that are all shapes, shadows and tall slanted walls — was introduced in 1997.
While this sequel revisits similar territory to that of the first film, Wan brings a tension here that is every bit as oppressive as the effectively grim 1970s production design.
Recent data from the euro-zone, where nearly every government is practicing austerity, paint a grim picture: industrial production fell for the third month in a row in November and unemployment climbed to another record high.
Michael Billington opened his Guardian review of the play with a particularly grim statistic: the production of In Celebration "exactly doubles the number of straight plays by living British dramatists in the West End".
Meanwhile, in Europe, which has had much more austerity in aggregate than we have, grim new industrial production numbers and a worsening unemployment crisis: By the way, some readers have asked me what is happening to Ireland, which has seen an especially sharp fall in industrial production.
The Met's grim, boldly updated production by the director Adrian Noble, which opened in October, returns on Friday with a new cast, led by the baritone Carlos Álvarez, the soprano Hasmik Papian as Lady Macbeth, and, in the crucial role of Banquo, the formidable bass René Pape.
The statistics of sake production are grim.
The Federal Reserve meets, possibly for its 11th rate cut this year; figures -- probably grim -- on industrial production are expected.
