Arrangement from Thursday 22 to Sunday 25 August 2024,
3 nights
Arena Festival
Carmen is undoubtedly one of the most popular and most performed operas in the world. Its premiere in 1875 at the Opéra-Comique in Paris, however, was only a moderate success: The outrageous new realism, the brutality and vehemence in the actors’ actions, and not least the shady milieu, overwhelmed the conventional Parisian audience, which was stuck in old patterns of thought.The opera is set around 1820 in Seville, Andalusia, and is based on the novella of the same name by Prosper Merimée. The libretto was co-produced by Henri Meilhac and Ludovic Halévy (nephew of composer Jacques Fromental Halévy and also cousin of Georges Bizet’s wife). Shortly after its premiere, Carmen began its triumphal march across the world via Vienna and the rest of Europe, a triumph that continues to this day.The theme and plot of this opera inspired numerous artists to create independent works, and various (opera and dance) films as well as ballets were made. Georges Bizet (1838-1875), however, unfortunately did not live to see the triumph of his sensual and passionate masterpiece. Exactly three months to the day after the first performance, he succumbed to a fatal heart attack at the age of only 36.
Carmen♪ - G. Bizet, the 23
Leonardo Sini - Franco Zeffirelli
Clémentine Margaine, Aleksandra Kurzak, Roberto Alagna, Dalibor Jenis
Arena
The Barber of Seville - G. Rossini, the 24
George Petrou - Hugo de Ana
Jessica Pratt, Marianna Mappa, Lawrence Brownlee, Davide Luciano
Arena