Vincent Pontet / OnP

Opera

Carmen

Georges Bizet

Opéra Bastille

from 15 November 2022 to 25 February 2023

Carmen

Opéra Bastille - from 15 November 2022 to 25 February 2023

Synopsis

At the premiere of Carmen on March 3rd 1875 at the Opéra‑Comique, the audience, shocked by its “Castillian wantonness”, cried scandal! Georges Bizet, who died three months later, never knew that his opera was to become one of the most widely performed in the world. Although the success of this work can be attributed to its unforgettable melodies, it also owes much to the independent character of the celebrated cigarette factory worker: “Carmen will never give in. Born free, she will die free”, sings the heroine to Don José at the end of the opera. Her irrepressible liberty, coupled with the necessity to live on a knife’s edge, ever more intensely, is captured by Calixto Bieito’s production as by none other. From Mérimée’s original character, Bieito’s Carmen retains her profoundly Iberian contours and the ardent temperament of a woman living off small‑time trafficking. This rebel, however, is a thoroughly contemporary creature. A tantalising and indomitable vamp, she lives life in the fast lane, in an urgent desire to fully exist.

Duration :

Language : French

Surtitle : French / English

  • Opening

  • First part 85 min

  • Intermission 30 min

  • Second part 60 min

  • End

Show acts and characters

CHARACTERS

Carmen: A gypsy girl, working as a cigar-maker in a tobacco factory in Seville
Don José: A soldier and Carmen’s lover who deserts the army for her
Micaela: A young girl originally from Don José’s village
Escamillo: A toreador and one of Carmen’s lovers
Frasquita and Mercedes: Two gypsy girls who are friends of Carmen
Zuniga: Don José’s superior officer
Morales: A regimental comrade of Don José
Le Dancaïre and Remendado: Two smugglers

ACT I
A group of soldiers are parading in a square. Micaela, a young peasant girl, questions them as to the whereabouts of Don José. Morales, the sergeant, informs her that he will not arrive until the changing of the guard and then tries to convince the young girl to stay. Disconcerted by his proposal, Micaela takes her leave and vows to return later. The relief guard arrives, accompanied by a band of children mimicking the soldiers. It is midday. As the bell of the tobacco factory sounds, a number of young men arrive to watch the cigarette girls emerge. Carmen, a young gypsy woman, is amongst them. Everyone gathers around her, however, she takes an interest in none of them. Instead, she tries to attract the attention of Don José who seems not to notice her. As the bell indicates the resumption of work, Carmen plucks the flower from her blouse and throws it at him. The crowd disperses. Don José remains alone, troubled in spite of himself. Micaela reappears and together she and Don José reminisce about times past in their village. Don José reads the letter that Micaela has given him. In it, his mother expresses the joy she would feel if he were to marry the young girl. Embarrassed, Micaela, withdraws. Meanwhile, a dispute erupts inside the factory and Carmen injures one of her workmates. On Zuniga’s orders, Don José arrests her. However, Carmen manages to persuade Don José to let her escape and she pushes him to the ground and runs off.

ACT II
Two months have passed. Carmen learns from lieutenant Zuniga that Don José, who was demoted and imprisoned for allowing her to escape, was released the previous day. Everyone then toasts the toreador Escamillo who responds with a song. However, Carmen pays no attention to his advances. The toreador leaves, followed by the officers. Two smugglers, Le Dancaïre and Le Remendado, urge the young women to accompany them. Carmen refuses and waits instead for Don José. True to the rendezvous he made with Carmen two months earlier, Don José arrives. Carmen dances for him, but, outside, the bugle sounds and Don José is obliged to return to the barracks for roll call. As he is about to leave, Zuniga appears and the two men fight. Carmen calls for help and her smuggler friends appear and disarm Zuniga. Don José no longer has a choice: he is now obliged to follow Carmen and the smugglers.

ACT III
Several months have elapsed and time has taken its toll on Carmen and Don José. She has grown weary of his jealousy and he reproaches himself for having abandoned everything for her. Carmen sees Mercedes and Frasquita reading the cards and she goes over to join them, only to discover that the cards are foretelling her own death. Micaela makes her way to the smugglers’ camp in search of Don José. She sees him and calls out but he does not hear her. Instead he fires at an unidentified figure approaching the encampment. It is Escamillo. He tells Don José that he has come to find the woman he loves: Carmen. Don José challenges the toreador to a duel with knives. They fight and Escamillo stumbles but Carmen and the smugglers arrive and intervene in the nick of time. Micaela, who is still hiding, is finally discovered. She begs Don José to return with her to see his dying mother. Carmen does not try to hold him back. He leaves but not before issuing a warning to her.

ACT IV
It is the day of the corrida. Escamillo makes his entrance with Carmen on his arm. The crowd flocks into the arena. Frasquita alerts Carmen to the fact that Don José is hiding nearby. Carmen refuses to flee and she remains alone in the square opposite Don José. In despair, he begs her to come away with him to start a new life together but Carmen is adamant: She will not go with him. Don José begs her again. In the arena, the crowd cheers Escamillo. Carmen is eager to go inside. “He’s the one I love now” she tells Don José. In a final gesture of defiance, she throws away the ring he gave her. Beside himself with rage, Don José kills her.

Artists

Opera in four acts (1875)

After Prosper Mérimée

Creative team

Cast

Media

  • “Carmen” and the Paris Opera

    “Carmen” and the Paris Opera

    See the slideshow

  • Draw-me Carmen

    Draw-me Carmen

    Watch the video

  • Imaginaries Carmen

    Imaginaries Carmen

    Watch the video

  • Carmen - headlong into the bullring

    Carmen - headlong into the bullring

    Watch the video

  • Opera word for word - Carmen

    Opera word for word - Carmen

    Listen the podcast

© Eric Mahoudeau / OnP

See the slideshow

A photographic retrospective

01 min

“Carmen” and the Paris Opera

By Octave

Since its creation at the Opéra-Comique in 1875, Bizet's Carmen has made frequent appearances at the Paris Opera along with its share of star-studded casts and daring stagings. To mark the work's return to the Opéra Bastille, in Calixto Bieito's production, a retrospective in images of the Opera's multiple visions of Carmen.

Draw-me Carmen

Watch the video

Understand the plot in 1 minute

1:09 min

Draw-me Carmen

By Octave

“Carmen will never surrender, born free, free will she die”cries Bizet’s heroine to Don José at the end of the opera. This irrepressible freedom, coupled with a need to live ever more intensely on a knife-edge, is present in Calixto Bieito’s production as in no other. Of Mérimée’s character, Bieito’s Carmen retains her thoroughly Iberian contours and the burning temperament of a woman who lives by small-time trafficking. However, the rebel bird is essentially a creature of our own times. A brazen and indomitable seductress and a product of social and masculine brutality, she lives life in the fast lane, avid for existence.  

Imaginaries Carmen

Watch the video

A repertoire work narrated in a visual poem born of popular culture

2:44 min

Imaginaries Carmen

By Marc de Pierrefeu

© Guergana Damianova / OnP

Carmen - headlong into the bullring

Watch the video

Interview with Gaëlle Arquez

6:42 min

Carmen - headlong into the bullring

By Marion Mirande

Who is Carmen? A rebel? The victim of a society she rejects and dares to confront? A woman in love? What are the vocal implications of the role? For her first Carmen at the Paris Opera, Gaëlle Arquez draws the portrait of Opéra’s most famous heroine.  

Opera word for word - Carmen

Listen the podcast

Literary podcast evoking an opera and a stage director's vision

01 min

Opera word for word - Carmen

By Benoit Maubrey, Marion Mirande

Georges Bizet's Carmen in Calixto Bieito's production, in the words of Théophile Gautier, Javier Cercas, Prosper Mérimée, Renaud Rebardy, Pascal Bruckner.

Copyright :

  • Théophile Gautier, Carmen dans Émaux et Camées, 1852
  • Javier Cercas, Les Lois de la frontière, (c) Actes Sud, 2014
  • Prosper Mérimée, Carmen, 1845
  • Renaud Rebardy, Les Filles de la Jonquera, (c) Mare nostrum, 2010
  • Pascal Bruckner, Le Paradoxe amoureux, (c) Grasset, 2009
  • Prosper Mérimée, Carmen, 1845

  • [EXTRAIT] CARMEN by Bizet - Habanera (Gaëlle Arquez)
  • [EXTRAIT] CARMEN by Bizet (Gaëlle Arquez & Michael Spyres) - Près des remparts de Séville
  • TOÏ TOÏ TOÏ I 5 questions sur CARMEN avec GAËLLE ARQUEZ
  • Vous connaissez CARMEN de Bizet ?
  • [EXTRAIT] CARMEN by Bizet (Michael Spyres) - La fleur que tu m'avais jetée
  • [EXTRAIT] CARMEN by Bizet (Lucas Meachem & Gaëlle Arquez) - Si tu m'aimes
  • Carmen (saison 22/23)- Acte 1 (Michael Spyres, Gaëlle Arquez)

  • Carmen (saison 22/23) - Acte 3(Gaëlle Arquez, Andrea Cueva Molnar, Adèle Charvet)

  • Carmen (saison 22/23)- Acte 1 (Choeur d'enfants)

  • Carmen (saison 22/23) - Acte 2 (Michael Spyres)

  • Carmen (saison 22/23) - Acte 4 (Gaëlle Arquez)

  • Carmen (saison 22/23) - Acte 1 (Habanera)

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Carmen

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Access and services

Opéra Bastille

Place de la Bastille

75012 Paris

Public transport

Underground Bastille (lignes 1, 5 et 8), Gare de Lyon (RER)

Bus 29, 69, 76, 86, 87, 91, N01, N02, N11, N16

Calculate my route
Car park

Q-Park Opéra Bastille 34, rue de Lyon 75012 Paris

Book your parking spot
  • Cloakrooms

    Free cloakrooms are at your disposal. The comprehensive list of prohibited items is available here.

  • Bars

    Reservation of drinks and light refreshments for the intervals is possible online up to 24 hours prior to your visit, or at the bars before each performance.

  • Boutiques

    A selection of works items are available on our various boutiques: Online store and The Opéra Bastille Shop.

    LEARN MORE.

  • Last-minute tickets

    Special reduced rates for people under the age of 28, unemployed and seniors over 65 are available. 

    LEARN MORE.

  • Parking

    You can park your car at the Q-Park Opéra Bastille. It is located at 34 rue de Lyon, 75012 Paris. 

    BOOK YOUR PARKING PLACE.

In both our venues, discounted tickets are sold at the box offices from 30 minutes before the show:

  • €35 tickets for under-28s, unemployed people (with documentary proof less than 3 months old) and senior citizens over 65 with non-taxable income (proof of tax exemption for the current year required)
  • €70 tickets for senior citizens over 65

Get samples of the operas and ballets at the Paris Opera gift shops: programmes, books, recordings, and also stationery, jewellery, shirts, homeware and honey from Paris Opera.

Opéra Bastille
  • Open 1h before performances and until performances end
  • Get in from within the theatre’s public areas
  • For more information: +33 1 40 01 17 82

Opéra Bastille

Place de la Bastille

75012 Paris

Public transport

Underground Bastille (lignes 1, 5 et 8), Gare de Lyon (RER)

Bus 29, 69, 76, 86, 87, 91, N01, N02, N11, N16

Calculate my route
Car park

Q-Park Opéra Bastille 34, rue de Lyon 75012 Paris

Book your parking spot
  • Cloakrooms

    Free cloakrooms are at your disposal. The comprehensive list of prohibited items is available here.

  • Bars

    Reservation of drinks and light refreshments for the intervals is possible online up to 24 hours prior to your visit, or at the bars before each performance.

  • Boutiques

    A selection of works items are available on our various boutiques: Online store and The Opéra Bastille Shop.

    LEARN MORE.

  • Last-minute tickets

    Special reduced rates for people under the age of 28, unemployed and seniors over 65 are available. 

    LEARN MORE.

  • Parking

    You can park your car at the Q-Park Opéra Bastille. It is located at 34 rue de Lyon, 75012 Paris. 

    BOOK YOUR PARKING PLACE.

In both our venues, discounted tickets are sold at the box offices from 30 minutes before the show:

  • €35 tickets for under-28s, unemployed people (with documentary proof less than 3 months old) and senior citizens over 65 with non-taxable income (proof of tax exemption for the current year required)
  • €70 tickets for senior citizens over 65

Get samples of the operas and ballets at the Paris Opera gift shops: programmes, books, recordings, and also stationery, jewellery, shirts, homeware and honey from Paris Opera.

Opéra Bastille
  • Open 1h before performances and until performances end
  • Get in from within the theatre’s public areas
  • For more information: +33 1 40 01 17 82

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