Following its premiere in the 2023/24 Season, Damiano Michieletto’s 'simmering, naturalistic’ (Guardian) staging returns to the Main Stage. Mark Elder, Christopher Willis and Ariane Matiakh conduct two casts headlined by Olivier Award-nominated Aigul Akhmetshina and Anna Goryachova as the impassioned Carmen and Freddie De Tommaso and Charles Castronovo as her jealous lover Don José.

Classic work, contemporary production

Bizet took the plot of Carmen from the popular novella of the same name by French writer Prosper Mérimée, who claimed to be inspired by a true story. Though it earned a lukewarm response from the press and public at its premiere – in part due to its heady combination of passion, sensuality and violence – the opera soon became immensely popular and remains an enduring favourite today. In fact, Carmen is the second most performed opera in The Royal Opera’s repertory, having been performed over 600 times. 

Catchy melodies

Drawing from the opera's setting of Seville, Bizet’s unforgettable score boasts a host of Spanish-inspired melodies, including Carmen's sensual ‘Habanera’ and ‘Seguidilla’ arias, and Don José's tender ‘Flower Song’, ‘La fleur que tu m'avais jetée’ (The flower that you threw to me). The composer’s gift for writing memorable melodies reaches its peak in the flamboyance and masculinity of Escamillo’s ‘Toreador Song’, one of the most instantly recognisable arias in all classical music.