Scottish Opera: Bizet's Carmen

Georges Bizet’s classic opera of jealousy, lust, and life outside the dictates of society gets a boldly updated new production, translated and performed in English, to conclude Scottish Opera’s 60th Season.

With such hit melodies as the Habanera, Flower Aria, and Toreador Song – alongside Bizet’s magnificent orchestral interludes and rousing chorus numbers – the opera has musical riches for all.

But Carmen is not merely one show-stopping number after another. With director John Fulljames (Nixon in China 2020) at the helm and a design team led by Sarah Beaton and Christina Cunningham, Carmen’s iconic images are delivered amidst the unrest and upheavals of 1970s Spain, where the investigation into Carmen’s murder runs alongside the systems that led to her death. Carmen is the eternal outsider, carving out a life by her own rules in a militaristic and patriarchal society. The contrast of an often buoyant score and much crowd-driven action with the libretto’s introspective psychological darkness makes Carmen an endlessly fascinating work.

With Justina Gringyte in the title role and featuring four of Scottish Opera’s 22/23 Emerging Artists – Zoe Drummond, Lea Shaw, Osian Wyn Bowen, and Colin Murray – don’t miss the chance to see the Company’s timely take on this timeless masterpiece.

Sung in English with English supertitles Translation by Christopher Cowell