ROH's new "Carmen"

[Geoff]

The General rehearsal was last night. We don't review rehearsals but I think it is worth noting for those who are still undecided as to whether to get a ticket, there is no gorilla in the new production by Damiano Michieletto.

 

In fact this show feels almost like a companion piece to the same director's Cav and Pag. As Amazon might say, if you liked that, you may like this one. 

[Scheherezade]

4 hours ago, Geoff said:

The General rehearsal was last night. We don't review rehearsals but I think it is worth noting for those who are still undecided as to whether to get a ticket, there is no gorilla in the new production by Damiano Michieletto.

 

In fact this show feels almost like a companion piece to the same director's Cav and Pag. As Amazon might say, if you liked that, you may like this one. 

 

My thoughts exactly. No guesswork needed to identify the director.

[Cayetana]

Went on Monday. Loved the actual direction and interpretation but found staging itself lacking and at points caricaturesque (the children holding boards?!). All the women shone brightly (even if Michaela’s looks were a joke - first student then church “beata” with a rosary as a medal?!). Carmen herself (Aigul) I found fascinating in all areas - beautiful singing and nonchalant acting. So much so I want to see her in Glyndebourne on same role. 

Edited April 11, 2024 by Cayetana

[CCL]

Adam Smith, who really impressed me in ‘Tosca’ for ENO, has just announced that he is stepping in as Don Jose for two dates. How I wish I could go, but only ruinously expensive seats are left.

[Dawnstar]

@CCL You've got time to try Friday rush. The performances on Sunday 12th & Friday 17th will have tickets available in this Friday's rush.

[Emeralds]

10 minutes ago, CCL said:

Adam Smith, who really impressed me in ‘Tosca’ for ENO, has just announced that he is stepping in as Don Jose for two dates. How I wish I could go, but only ruinously expensive seats are left.

Yippee! Adam Smith is one of the best Cavaradossis I've ever seen and heard! (Someone who can really put the acting and the singing together in service of the story and isn't just "a voice".) 

 

At long, long. last- I've been saying Covent Garden should hire Adam ever since I heard him at the Proms and that ENO Tosca. If only it could have been planned and scheduled in advance instead of as an unexpected jump in. (But what a brilliant replacement!). And they're on the same dates as Andrii Kymach who was brilliant (singing the same aria, no less) when he won Cardiff Singer of the World in 2019 - another soloist whom I've been saying RO took too long to hire. 

 

@CCL, there is currently one £25 Upper Slips seat on Friday 17th. I'm going to check out what is available during Friday Rush for those 3 dates. Naturally, I wish Brandon Jovanovich a speedy recovery from whatever is keeping him off the stage for those 2 weeks.

[CCL]

@Dawnstarthanks! I’d forgotten about Friday rush because I don’t normally try for it. If I can get online at that time, I will try.

@Emeraldsso glad there’s another admirer of Mr Smith on the forum! He really did make an excellent Cavaradossi and I have been hoping he might come to the ROH some day.

[Emeralds]

Forgot to add, @CCL- the ROH website says Adam will sing 3 dates : 12, 17, 20 May, so that's three chances to get decent ticket/s (12th and 17th are sold on this Friday's Friday Rush while Friday Rush for 20th will be sold on Friday 17th.) Plus a few decent returns might appear on other days too. Fingers crossed  😀 🤞 🍀 

Edited May 8, 2024 by Emeralds

[Dawnstar]

@CCL Were you able to get a rush ticket today?

 

I had a quick look at the Carmen rush tickets - out of curiosity, I'm not planning to see it - and I was very surprised to see the tickets near the back of the amphitheatre are the same price as those at the sides of the stalls circle. Usually the amphitheatre ones are significantly cheaper (for Swan Lake they're £35 compared to £75). For Carmen both are £49. That's the same as Winter's Tale for the side stalls circle, even though the top price for Carmen is more than £100 more than that for Winter's Tale. The ROH pricing choices continue to completely baffle & exasperate me!

[Emeralds]

@Dawnstar you did better than I - I got put into a queue for 9-10 minutes and didn't even get to see the rear amphi tickets at all! But I did manage to get a ticket (below £100!) before today, although I had logged in hoping to find a Friday Rush ticket for a friend who is also interested in going because of the cast changes. (She will try the Monday show instead.)

 

There have been a few returns trickling in (there's a £25 standing ticket for Sunday at present) daily and I expect there might be a few more on Saturday morning and afternoon before the 24 hour cutoff. I'm guessing they priced it according to perceived demand and they were right- both ROH & Glyndebourne Carmens (both new productions) are selling and have sold very successfully. 

Edited May 10, 2024 by Emeralds

[Dawnstar]

@Emeralds I'm surprised that you had to queue. Maybe I was just lucky but I was able to get a Winter's Tale ticket for Monday all booked & paid for by 13.02. Maybe everyone else was fighting over Carmen & Swan Lake tickets & not many wanted Winter's Tale! In fact checking 3 and a half hours after the rush tickets went on sale there are still a quite few left, as well as plenty of non-rush tickets too. Though there's also one rear amphi & one balcony standing still available for Carmen on 17th if anyone's still looking for that (all gone for 12th).

Edited May 10, 2024 by Dawnstar

[CCL]

@Dawnstar @Emeralds I forgot about Friday rush! It’s been a somewhat chaotic day at work ☹️ I’ll try to remember for the 20th

Edited May 10, 2024 by CCL

[Emeralds]

5 hours ago, CCL said:

@Dawnstar @Emeralds I forgot about Friday rush! It’s been a somewhat chaotic day at work ☹️ I’ll try to remember for the 20th

Have a look during mid mornings and afternoons, CCL- I've seen some £25  standing and £49 and £97 seats go back on sale. Also, tomorrow early afternoon and Thursday evening will probably see some returns go back before the 24 hour deadline on the website kicks in. 

[Emeralds]

A few £49 and £97 returns have surfaced for the two performances by the Ramona Zaharia/Adam Smith/Andrii Kymach/Gemma Summerfield cast tomorrow night and Monday night. Highly recommend trying to get a Friday Rush ticket in the Rear Amphitheatre or other sections if you can't get hold of these tickets in the Balcony Sides, Amphitheatre or Lower Slips. (If faced with a choice, I think the right hand side - the side with bigger numbers) has better views/sightlines because of the set. 

 

A quick report to say that the 12 May performance, which marked the debuts of Zaharia, Smith, Kymach and Summerfield in this production - it was also the ROH debut for Smith, Kymach and Summerfield so a pretty special performance. How did they do? They were magnificent! 

 

I wasn't a fan of this new version after watching it (although it was far more enjoyable than the controversial production it replaced)- it felt very much like a sequel of Micheletti's own Cavalleria Rusticana/I Pagliacci double bill, with some ideas copied from ENO's production by Calixto Bieito, a rehash of the 20th century reboot complete with vehicles on stage (Micheletti seems to like putting cars on stage in operas) and the drab normcore costumes (only Carmen, Frasquita and Mercedes are given colours- but you have to wait till Act 3 and 4 to see them). Micaela is given the ugliest costumes ever conceived for a soprano, and her character isn't just a naive, lovelorn girl but an obsessive, annoying and clingy one, so at odds with the beautiful singing written for her, and the pure beauty in Summerfield's voice. 

 

I'm also not a huge fan of productions where the lead soprano has to do everything and be everything, including squeezing into model-tight outfits that are very unforgiving and require perfect or carefully positiined posture at all times- surely can't be very comfortable to sing in. Despite that, Ramona Zaharia (last seen at ROH in Rigoletto as Maddalena), embraced the challenge, managing to be sultry, confident and alluring (you can see why Don Jose, Escamillo and others fall for her), nailing the acting, singing and shimmying the role demands.

 

I'm not sure why the cigarette factory girls are dressed like plumbers or  mechanics in Act 1 (do they have to repair the pipes and vans of the factory too??) but Zaharia manages to carry off the look as well as the floral dress and the 70s flares of later acts.

 

The opera is a demanding one for its mezzo soprano lead- she has 3 showpiece arias, and lots of dramatic passages of singing in between. The first Carmen I saw on stage was the legendary Maria Ewing, and Zaharia was equally unforgettable considering it was her debut in this production (she has sung it elsewhere in Europe) - her Habanera was charismatic and commanding. 

 

Adam Smith, making a long awaited ROH debut as Don Jose, which he has sung in Seattle, Tulsa and St Louis, after a successful run as Cavaradossi at ENO and a successful Proms debut (on tv too!)in Il Tabarro as Luigi. He reminds me of Jonas Kaufmann and Placido Domingo (even Gigli- from recordings!) in his style of singing where the emotion of the character is very much expressed in each aria and each passage that he sings. It's perfect for a complex character like Don Jose. The Flower Song was powerfully sung and brought a tear to my eye. 

 

A friend of mine who actually doesn't like opera was watching Andrii Kymach on BBC's Cardiff Singer of the World in 2019, was very impressed by the dedication of "the young baritone from Ukraine who delivered fridges while training as a singer, in order to follow his dream" and texted me about him! He sang Escamillo's Toreador Song at the final and won! In this production, Escamillo has to burst in with oodles of charisma and pizazz in the middle of a drab town and launch straight into this aria with heaps of confidence- which Kymach does, a strong and charismatic rendition (saddled with an awful costume, think Travolta's Saturday Night Fever suit in an unflattering dark mustard colour). But Kymach is so good in the role you don't care. He's also excellent in the confrontation scene with Don Jose and the last Act with Carmen.

 

Alongside them, Gabrielė Kupšytė and Isabela Diaz are charismatic and sing beautifully as Mercedes and Frasquita, Josef Jeongmeen Ahn memorable as smuggler Dancaire - funny to think Diaz and Ahn were singing such different parts in Requiem with the Royal Ballet last month and in March. The three are Jette Parker Young Artists now but are on their way to becoming stars in their own right. 

 

So as already mentioned by fellow members above, a rather flawed production (no choreography or true dancing either) but these four young stars and their supporting cast make the opera fizz, and are well worth seeing. 

Edited May 16, 2024 by Emeralds

[CCL]

@Emeralds. I’m so glad to hear that the debuts were impressive and well received. I’ve resigned myself to not seeing it - can’t do tonight anyway and I’ve too much on at work to countenance a late Monday night out - but reading your very interesting review has given me a ‘flavour’ of what I’ll be missing - thank you  😊

[alison]

Isn't there a cinema relay, or am I imagining it?

[Dawnstar]

I believe the cinema relay already happened a couple of weeks ago, with the first cast.

[akh]

It did and it was fabulous and thoroughly enjoyed by all

[alison]

Oops ...

[oncnp]

Cast change

Brandon Jovanovich has withdrawn from the performances of Carmen on Thursday 23, Saturday 25, Wednesday 29 and Friday 31 May due to illness. The role of Don José will be performed by Adam Smith, who made his House debut in the role of Don José earlier this month. 

[Emeralds]

Another chance,  @CCL, if you're free tomorrow! A very good seat in row B amphi at £49 (labelled restricted but sightlines  very good; I've sat there for ballet) in returns at the moment. The same dream team of Ramona+Adam+Andrii as that on 12 May.  Adam is continuing for the last 3 performances together with Andrii as Escamillo, but for the last 3 shows, Ramona leaves and Carmen will be sung by Vasilisa Berzhanskaya. There's currently a £49 return in Amphi (R45) on Sat 25th. 

 

Wishing Brandon Jovanovich a quick and complete recovery from his health issues that he has publicly posted about. He will be missed, having given  successful performances at ROH in and as Lohengrin. Hopefully he can return when recovered to sing in a revival. 

Edited May 22, 2024 by Emeralds

[Timmie]

This production is the BBC Radio 3 opera today at 6pm (and then on BBC Sounds).

 

“Aigul Akhmetshina sings Carmen at the Royal Opera House, Covent Garden in London, with Piotr Beczala as her Don José and Antonello Manacorda conducting.”

[Emeralds]

NB Another cast change I noticed while checking cast sheets for Winter's Tale! The last 3 performances of Carmen have now been had a cast change for the role of Don Jose again. Adam Smith sang 23 May but has been replaced for 25, 29 and 31 May by French tenor Jean-Francois Borras, who has sung the role in France and Spain.

 

It doesn't seem to be due to illness or anything health/voice related; Smith posted on his social media accounts after the 23 May performance that it was his last show and he is currently in Aix-en-Provence, where he is due to sing Pinkerton in Madama Butterfly to Ermonela Jaho's Cio-Cio-San shortly; I presume he was needed for rehearsals. Berzhanskaya and Kymach are continuing their performances. Miranda Westcott sings Mercedes tonight, replacing Gabrielė Kupšytė.