Brno National Theatre Will Perform Carmen with an International Cast

7 March 2016, 16:00
Brno National Theatre Will Perform Carmen with an International Cast

After a year, the opera Carmen returns to the stage of Janáček Theatre in a new staging. Guest mezzo-soprano Atala Schöck from Hungary will perform in the lead role, and tenor Alexandru Badea from Romania as Don José.

After a year, Bizet's Carmen returns in a new staging. The previous production directed by Ladislav Štros and Jan Zbavitel premiered in 1998, and the last repeat performance took place last season. This time, the opera will be introduced by guest director Tomáš Pilař. It is his second engagement in the Janáček Theatre. During the previous one, he staged operetta Polish Blood. Pilař's directorial concept of Carmen is based primarily on a novel by Prosper Mérimée, which inspired the theme of the libretto, and also draws from the original libretto (of which there are already several versions nowadays). Nearly all the recitatives are presented as dialogues in the new staging, the scene of the "argument of workers" is extended and the Morales aria will be newly performed.

The Hungarian mezzo-soprano Atala Schöck is a guest artist at the Janáček Opera for the first time. Over the past six years, she has appeared as Carmen in six productions across Europe. Atala Schöck regularly cooperates with the Hungarian State Opera, Theater an der Wien and National Opéra de Paris.

Carmen, to be performed in Brno, is set in the 1840s. The art design by Aleš Valášek works primarily with tobacco boxes, the number of which is slowly reducing and thus reflects the emptiness of life of Don José. Costumes are sewn from custom-printed fabrics that were made specifically for the production.

The premiere will take place on 18 March 2016 at 7:00 p.m. at Janáček Theatre.

Photo: Marek Olbrzymek

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