Georges Bizet may not have received many congratulations on his new work when the curtain fell on "Carmen's" premiere at the Opéra-Comique in 1875, but the Boston Lyric Opera deserves many for their fresh and exciting take on one of the most-performed operas in history.
"Carmen" is the story of a gypsy woman who falls in love with and seduces a soldier, convincing him to desert his regiment and fiancée and join her and her band in their lives of crime. With time, the soldier, Don José (John Bellemer), is driven mad by jealousy as the free-spirited Carmen's (Dana Beth Miller) affections for him begin to wane. When Carmen leaves Don José for a famous bullfighter, not even the erstwhile soldier's ever-patient and pure fiancée can console him, nor can she prevent the story's tragic ending.
Boston Lyric Opera's (BLO) rendering of Bizet's masterpiece is entrancing from the beginning notes of the overture, conducted by Boston Pops' Keith Lockhart. It is when the curtain is first raised, though, that the audience sees the unconventional set that portends the originality of this production.
In the first act, a series of low platforms span the stage, allowing for pleasing movement and variation without any ornate distractions. The floor is covered in gravel and overhanging the entire scene is an enormous panel with the remains of a fresco of the Last Judgment from medieval Spain. The partially destroyed Christian image echoes the battle between Don José's Christian piety and Carmen's pagan belief in the tarot. The opera opens dramatically with Don José illuminated by side lighting, in profile and kneeling in prayer on one of the platforms. With the word "innovation" usually denoting excessive uses of technology and distracting ornamentation in opera, it is refreshing to see simple ideas in direction used so effectively.
Dana Beth Miller makes her BLO debut as Carmen and proves to be a strong centerpiece in the performance. Both her voice and manner are as commanding as Carmen's should be.
Other highlights of the cast include Carmen's two lovers: Daniel Mobbs as the bullfighter Escamillo and John Bellemer as the tortured Don José. Though the story of "Carmen" is fraught with jealousy and anger, it is not the consummate downer that other grand operas are — many hilarious lines and characters are woven into the storyline, making the production an incredibly enjoyable experience. Mobbs greatly adds to this enjoyment — his portrayal of the flashy Escamillo becomes so beloved that when the audience hears him sing the famous "Toreadora" offstage, everyone laughs and is delighted by the prospect of his imminent reappearance on stage. Though she is overshadowed by the strongly-acted characters around her, Hanan Alattar's voice adds a beautiful element to the performance as Don José's faithful fiancée, Micaëla. In fact, her duet with Don José rivals Carmen's legendary "Habanera" for the most pleasurable moment in the first act.
The quality of the singing in this production is consistently high, and the dynamics are well-balanced with the strength of Lockhart's orchestra, which allows the visual elements of the direction to shine without upstaging the human performances. Real torches cast beautiful shadows on the back panel during Escamillo's "midnight parade," and the tobacco factory girls contemplate real smoke from their cigarettes as they lounge on their platforms. These small touches lend an earthy and realistic feel to the performance.
Unfortunately, not every visual innovation works well. A dark red scrim covering the stage for an entire scene in the second act is an addition the production should have gone without. The prolonged obscuration of activity onstage is more frustrating to the viewer than it is visually interesting.
Similarly, though the placement of Escamillo in the background of Carmen and Don Jose's final confrontation in the last scene is a brilliant addition, for some reason director Nicholas Muni decided to have Don José strangle Carmen instead of stab her — not only blatantly ignoring the libretto, but also shunning the wealth of imagery and metaphor available from the theme of bullfighting and other dramatic uses of blades throughout the show.
Complaints such as these are few and far between for this performance. At the end of this inspired production, it is clear that BLO has successfully fused the advantages of innovation with the strengths of a classic in its rendering of "Carmen." Whether this is a viewer's first time to the opera or seventh viewing of Bizet's classic, BLO's production is worth a trip into Boston.
