Carmen

The music of Bizet’s *Carmen* embodies both French *esprit* and Spanish passion. After all, who isn’t familiar with its immortal operatic hits—the famous "Habanera" or the Toreador Escamillo’s aria? Yet, what if there is something more beneath this story of love’s fickleness?

It began with a slim novella by the French writer Prosper Mérimée about Don José, a man who—driven by a foolish passion for a wild Gypsy woman—deserted the army to become a smuggler and a murderer. Directed by Tomáš Pilař, this production of *Carmen* returns to the original story, revealing new layers of the characters; here, they are, above all, human beings hailing from vastly different backgrounds. It is not merely a tale of Carmen’s fickle, unbridled love—something the jealous José cannot come to terms with. It is a clash of two worlds: the orderly, tidy realm of José and Micaëla, bound by established rules, and the world of Gypsies and smugglers living day-to-day, free from laws and driven by immediate impulses. Their worlds suddenly collide, but this disparity sparks a tension and conflict that ultimately lead to the total destruction of both. Neither is able to prevent this, as neither is willing—or able—to yield.