Past Production Reviews
1One of my fondest memories of growing up in Wiesbaden, Germany was dressing up and attending Sunday matinees with my Grandma Dorothy at the Opera House. If I could pick one word to describe my fond memories of the opera it would be grandeur. Unfortunately my experience with Opera Colorado's production of Bizet's CARMEN (Libretto by Henri Meilhac and Ludovic Halévy) was anything but. Before I go into this critic, I have to say that if they had called this Carmen: The Concert, my expectations would have been altered and thus this review. The design team of Director Kathleen Belcher, Chorus Master John Baril, Conductor Robert Wood, Lighting Design by SeifAllah Christobal, and Costume Design by Ann Piano gave us a more bare-bones and stripped down version of this iconic opera and just me wanted more...much more. With the lack of any set or backdrop, a forgotten chorus stuck in the back of the stage in white shirts and black slacks, a minimal ensemble and the orchestra sitting in the middle of the stage like an awkward elephant in the room. So here is my wish list from the show - I wish that they had dressed the chorus in peasant costumes and had a painted backdrop of a rolling Italian countryside to transport us (even a little) into the story. Had they done these small changes, I could have gone with the orchestra being onstage. Even for my issues with the show, I did see several moments of excellence including the fun gypsies and the passionate exchanges between Carmen and Don Jose.
