Despite the fact that I like theater in general, I have never really been a fan of opera. As with all of the arts, I respect the singers immensely and I understand that opera is one of the chief forms of art in the world today. That being said, it never really clicked for me, particularly if the opera isn't in English. Carmen unfortunately fits into that category. In this case, however, it didn't matter as much because the opera is one of the most famous in world history and the music itself is incredibly captivating. The opera was written by French composer Georges Bizet and premiered in Paris in early 1875. The opera didn't take off immediately and Bizet's early death prevented him from fully understanding how big the opera would become. Since then, the music has been sampled in hundreds of other plays and pieces of work and the opera itself has been redone countless times. I had to have my back to the stage for almost the entire time so honestly I really don't know what the opera is about but just listening to the music was good enough for me! the opera's score has been noted for leading the performance rather than the actors/singers and I couldn't agree more. The opera seems to be built around the music and I found myself recognizing songs that I never knew were from the Carmen. This for me exemplified the reach of this opera's influence in modern culture. Although this wasn't my favorite show, I feel like any person who want to really appreciate the arts has to see some opera and Carmen is definitely the opera to see.
This show was a lighter night than our last few and since it was an NSO show, it was pretty quiet as well. I unfortunately go yelled at twice (for very petty things too) so it wasn't a complete walk in the park but I did get to go to the loge where I saw Ruth Bader Ginsberg! Proof the Wolf Trap is treated with famous people once in a while. Overall, it was a beautiful nights and I was glad I was able to enjoy the music (I had to look for cameras so i couldn't watch the stage). As always, looking forward to more shows in the future!
My favorite part of the show is the overture (I think that's what you call it in opera?) that opens the show. One of the most famous pieces of music, I had no idea that it was from Carmen. Despite my inner embarrassment, I was really happy to hear the memorable parts and the NSO sounded great!
DC
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| I'm guessing that's Carmen? Jk |
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