Admin

Royal Ballet and Opera

Teatro Real de Madrid

Teatro alla Scala

Stage director

Stage director (+3)

Damiano Michieletto

Set designer

Set designer (+1)

Paolo Fantin

Costume designer

Costume designer (+2)

Carla Teti

Lighting designer

Alessandro Carletti

Dramaturge

Elisa Zaninotto

Chorusmaster

Chorusmaster (+2)

William Spaulding

Bass (+2)

Jamie Woollard

Zuniga

Bass (+3)

Siphe Kwani

Dancaire

Orchestra

Orchestra of the Royal Opera House

Tenor (+1)

Ryan Vaughan Davies

Remendado

Royal Opera House

Jette Parker Young Artists

Concertino invitado

Concertmaster (+3)

Magnus Johnston

Baritone (+3)

Dawid Kimberg

un bohémian

Chorus

Royal Opera Chorus

Conductor

Ariane Matiakh

Mezzo-soprano (+4)

Anna Goryachova

Carmen

Tenor (+3)

Charles Castronovo

Don José

Bass-baritone (+3)

Christian Van Horn

Escamillo

Soprano (+1)

Alison Langer

Frasquita

Mezzo-soprano (+2)

Veena Akama-Makia

Mercedes

Baritone (+2)

Grisha Martirosyan

Morales

Louise Armit

Une marchande d'oranges

Soprano

Selene Zanetti

Michaela

Aigul Akhmetshina

Tenor (+4)

Freddie De Tommaso

Yaritza Véliz

Lukasz Goliński

Marianna Hovanisyan

Mezzo-soprano (+1)

Cai Jingwen

Seumas Begg

Ross Ramgobin

Conductor (+2)

Mark Elder

Soprano (+2)

Valentina Puskás

Conductor (+1)

Christopher Willis

One of opera’s most notorious free spirits, Carmen is a rebel with a passionate cause – she wants to live and love in her own way. Though Carmen warns Don José not to love her, he gives up his job, reputation and girlfriend Micaëla for her. Soon bored of Don José's obsessive nature, Carmen moves on to celebrity toreador Escamillo. What she doesn’t anticipate is the searing jealousy that will be unleashed in her former lover. 

Olivier award-winning director Damiano Michieletto's searing new production evokes all the passion and heat of Bizet's score. Conductors Antonello Manacorda and Emmanuelle Villaume lead two stellar international casts, headlined by Aigul Akhmetshina, Vasilisa Berzhanskaya and Ramona Zaharia. 

 

The origins of Carmen

Bizet took the plot of Carmen from the popular novella of the same name by French writer Prosper Mérimée, who claimed to be inspired by a true story. Though it earned a lukewarm response from the press and public at its premiere – perhaps due to its heady combination of passion, sensuality and violence — the opera soon became immensely popular and remains an enduring favourite today. In fact, Carmen is the second most performed opera in The Royal Opera’s repertory, having been performed over 500 times.

 

The music of Carmen

Drawing from the opera's setting of Seville, Bizet’s unforgettable score boasts a host of Spanish-inspired melodies, including Carmen's sensual ‘Habanera’ and ‘Seguidilla’ arias, and Don José's tender ‘Flower Song’, ‘La fleur que tu m’as jétée’ (The flower that you threw to me). The composer’s gift for writing catchy melodies reaches its peak in the flamboyance and masculinity of Escamillo’s ‘Toreador Song’, one of the most instantly recognisable arias in all classical music.

French

Italian

London

United Kingdom

Main Stage

Carmen Bizet

Staged

Opera

Rahul Solomon

English

Watch Aigul Akmetshina and Vasilisa Berzhanskaya share the title role in Damiano Michieletto's searing new production of Bizet’s ever-popular opera. Carmen c...

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