Local cast dazzle alongside foreign counterparts

Hispanic fire dazzles in ‘Carmen’

HISPANIC fire is ignited in Michael Williams’s spirited production of the Bizet classic Carmen as singers, dancers and instrumentalists combine forces to do justice to the work. The opening bars of the overture are attacked at breathless speed under Tim Murray’s baton, and the pace remains athletic throughout, barring one or two respites.

The first is a prefatory cameo of the hero’s execution, so that a sense of doom darkens everything which follows, in the tradition of Greek tragedy and Shakespeare; no one can expect this drama to have a happy outcome, but that does not detract from the tension it inspires. Another of the rare moments of peace comes in Act 3, an evocative nocturne as Carmen confronts her imminent death. For the rest, all is passion, brilliance and vibrant activity which climaxes in the flamenco dancing of Acts 2 and 4, a fitting tribute to the late Carolyn Holden.

Strengths of this Carmen are the earthiness and physicality of its execution, and the authority of its leads. Anguelov and Robert (Carmen and Don José, respectively) fill their roles as if they had been minted for them, with complete ease, but never at the expense of intensity. Chemistry is key in convincing the audience, and these leads are irreproachable in conveying this. Robert’s rendition of José’s arias has to rank among the finest, richly resonant, throbbing with emotion, and matched in power by Anguelov’s vocal performance.

A gem is the contribution of Mpofu as Micaela. The young soprano manages to bring this usually insipid character of impossible virtue to life, endowing her with some spirit and even subtle sensuality – and her voice is a delight. Another secondary role of note is Zuniga, sung not for the first time by the full-lunged Xolela Sixaba, who does not disappoint, unlike William Berger as Escamillo. Berger has a pleasing voice more suited to chamber music venues than the opera stage, and he is miscast as the dashing, forceful and passionate toreador.

Michael Mitchell’s versatile stage set and Faheem Bardien’s mood-enhancing lighting add to the visual splendour of this large-scale production in which attention to detail lends a sense of authenticity as we enter the world of 19th-century Seville. Some touches border on the shocking, like the slashed watermelon Carmen lasciviously disembowels between her legs in Act 1, or the plate smashed in Act 2 to provide musical accompaniment to her dance for José.

This is yet another feather in the cap of CTO, showing what a company can achieve when local talent is enhanced by foreign artists.