Same goes for Norah Amsellem as Micaëla, whose vibrato, though less obtrusive here than in the Berlin Carmen, really does her no favor. Ildebrando D´ Arcangelo looks great as Escamilla, but I don´t really take to his grainy voice. Ironically, most Carmen performances end up with plenty of praise for Micaëla and Escamillo, as more often than not Don José and Carmen doesn´t really kick it off.

And indeed, with the cast presented I am inclined to not care about Zambello´s staging at all. Admittedly, it could have been much worse. And she succeeds admirably, presenting dreary, rusty simple sets and singers in period costumes. Further information here.ĭirector Francesca Zambello opted to create a 'realistically desolate' production of Carmen for the Royal Opera in order to reflect on the every-day background on which the drama unfolds. Cast: Anna Caterina Antonacci (Carmen), Jonas Kaufmann (Don José), Ildebrando D´ Arcangelo ( Escamillo), Norah Amsellem ( Micaëla). For the musical side of this successful production Zubin Mehta had top vocalists at his disposal to perform the roles of Carmen, Don José and Escamillo.Carmen.

The major Spanish actress and producer Nuria Espert was brought in for the production at London’s Royal Opera House, Covent Garden in 1991, while the authentic Flamenco choreography comes from Cristina Hoyos and is danced by, among others, Juan Ortego. The massive scandal of the premiere may have been partially the result of Bizet’s attempt to reform the Opéra Comique genre, yet it must still be said that Carmen is operatic history’s most famous example of a failure being corrected by the passage of time: Carmen is now one of the most frequently performed operas in the world.

The first performance of Carmen on 3 March 1875, produced such a hostile reaction that Bizet left Paris physically and psychologically ill, and died only three months later on 3 June 1875, following two serious heart attacks. The libretto, by Henri Meilac and Ludovic Halévy, is based on a novella by Prosper Mérimée.

Carmen opera dvd