Scottish Opera Bizet's "Carmen"

Beautiful gypsies, obsession, intense emotion and some of the liveliest rhythms in opera…it can only be Carmen. This new production is set in 1960s Spain, a country firmly entrenched in General Franco’s right-wing regime. Women are oppressed, the gypsies ghettoised, the country is riddled with poverty, and black-market smuggling is rife.

As a woman wanting to break free, the stakes are high for someone like Carmen. An outspoken gypsy with a beautiful face and a fiery temper, she sets her sights on the soldier Don José. His desire leads him to deny his friends and position and he is soon living the life of a smuggler in the desolate mountains of Spain. As his relationship with Carmen disintegrates and she leaves him for another, he sets out to prove his love, but Carmen has seen the future in her tarot cards and it isn’t a happy one.

Bizet’s boldly seductive opera has been one of the world’s favourite operas for over a century. From the sultry ‘Habanera’ to the naively passionate ‘Flower Song’ and the rousing ‘Toreador’s Song’, Bizet’s ever-popular music brings out the earthy vitality of his characters. Ashley Dean, director of 2009’s Opera Highlights tour directs a fine ensemble cast.