No matter how familiar it may be, Georges Bizet’s Carmen is always new. The enduring freshness of its music and the richness of its musical character are underpinned by the figure of a modern woman, and each performer responds to the challenge of Carmen in their own way, whether by adhering more closely to the classical, expected interpretation or by taking a different approach, opting for a departure and taking a new direction.
Carmen, as a character, an opera, a musical composition and a drama, returns to the Zagreb audience on the CNT stage. This time, the Zagreb Opera presents two new Carmens: young opera principals Sofija Petrović and Emilia Rukavina, who will each face the demanding mirror of Carmen and find their own reflection in the corrida of one of the most beautiful and popular operas ever written. The two opera principals will also take part in the Theatre Breakfast ahead of the premiere, where they will share their interpretations of a role that continues to intrigue audiences with its vitality and unbridled freedom.
The opera Carmen shocked its first audiences when it premiered at the Opéra-Comique in Paris in 1875. Georges Bizet, devastated by its initial failure, died shortly afterwards, at the age of just 36. But fortunes soon changed, and to this day Carmen continues to captivate audiences as one of the most frequently performed and best-loved operas of all time. It was first performed in Zagreb in 1893, with the libretto translated into Croatian in verse. Its journey on the Zagreb stage continued through a long succession of productions that followed one another almost without interruption throughout the twentieth century, before entering the twenty-first century with experimental interpretations by directors Philipp Himmelmann (2007) and Arnaud Bernard (2020).
The new production brings together Pier Giorgio Morandi, Chief Conductor of the Zagreb Opera, and director Pier Francesco Maestrini, whose operatic productions draw on tradition while finding connections with contemporary society. Zagreb audiences will remember him for his production of Rigoletto, which premiered in October 2023.
The enduring appeal of the story of a woman who refuses to be confined by any boundaries or ties, even those of love, choosing death as her final act of freedom, and the secrets of the music that captivates the widest audiences, ranging from the spirited Habanera and the Toreador Song to the dreamlike prelude to Act III, will be explored in conversation with our guests.
The discussion will be moderated by musicologist Zrinka Matić.
As part of the Theatre Breakfast, the two soloists will perform arias from the opera, accompanied by conductor Darijan Ivezić.
Georges Bizet
Habanera “L’amour est un oiseau rebelle”, Carmen, Act I
Emilia Rukavina, mezzo-soprano
Darijan Ivezić, piano
Seguidilla “Près des remparts de Séville”, Carmen, Act I
Sofija Petrović, mezzo-soprano
Darijan Ivezić, piano
