Carlos Acosta’s Carmen at Sadler’s Wells – Review

Last Updated on May 6, 2026

A Stunning Full-Length Carmen from Acosta Danza    

Carlos Acosta has brought his Acosta Danza dancers to Sadler’s Wells for his production of Carmen— that exciting but tragic tale of love and betrayal. His version of Carmen was originally a one-act ballet, premiered by the Royal Ballet in 2015, the year he retired from the company. He has extended it into a full-length work to explore the full potential of the piece.

For his full-length ballet, Carlos reunited with his original team of Tim Hatley (sets and costumes) and Peter Mumford (lighting) and was joined by Nina Dunn (Video Designer). The setting was designed as simple, sparse and dramatic in black and red, with an open circle at the back, rimmed at the start in red like a lunar halo and later all red like a lunar eclipse, and a red circle as the main dance space. The aim was to convey the story quickly without undue complication. The props were all black; the large hanging office-type lights, tables, chairs and the bed, etc.  Video projections such as red clouds were displayed on the large circle at the back to enhance the production and add to its brooding theme. The costumes were very effective in black, some white (Don José’s shirt), and the dramatic red of Carmen’s red dress in the second act.

Carlos Acosta appears in the ballet as The Bull, a striking figure against the red open circle representing Destiny, and as the Master of Ceremonies to manipulate Carmen and her story. He appears in black with an impressive bull headdress at the beginning of Act One, and, in Act Two, the Bull has a dramatic pas de deux with Carmen, lifting her over his horns.

The free-spirited, flirtatious Carmen was danced by Laura Rodriguez. She showed Carmen’s ambivalence towards her lover, soldier Don José (danced by Alejandro Silva), perfectly. I particularly liked their dance in Act One: Silva has her tied with a rope as they dance around the steel bars of a prison cage, but she is able to tie him up in knots in turn, physically and emotionally.  Their dances are passionate and loving and choreographed superbly by Acosta. Carmen remains an intriguing figure in Rodriguez’s hands, deeply honest in moments, authentic yet manipulative, loving and equally able to discard her lover cruelly in Act Two. Her choreography included a whirlwind of impressive leaps and seductive, come-hither poses, and alluring ensemble pieces with the men in both Acts. Laura Rodriguez is a sensual, skilled and expressive dancer, and portrayed excellently Carmen’s longing for independence and freedom.

Alejandro Silva as Don José was an ardent lover, almost against his reason, to such an extent that after his betrayal he is driven to rage and murder, although I think that the ballet would benefit from a longer exploration of this descent. He struck a forlorn figure at the end as he knelt, almost in disbelief, at what he had done, at the side of the dead Carmen.

Escamillio, the dashing toreador, was danced by Enrique Corrales and he struck an attractive figure, believably winning over Carmen with his swagger and powerful leaps and turns. Their pas de deux were sparkling with some lovely lifts.

The company had some wonderful scenes throughout the ballet; the dancers were full of technical skill, vibrancy and passionate energy. The Tavern scene at the start of Act Two was especially exciting and full of Cuban spirit and verve, and the remarkable visual effects will stay in your mind, even if the emotional story of Carmen doesn’t always hit its marks. Perhaps the lack of a live orchestra and slightly rushed character developments prevented a more complete sense of catharsis by the ballet’s end; however, the rich beauty of both the sets and dancing kept the story’s vivacious appeal in the fore.

Carmen is of course most widely known as the classic opera by Georges Bizet, who adapted it in 1875 from a novella by Prosper Miramée. There are actually many other versions of Carmen in opera, films and musicals. It has been created for ballet a number of times, including one by Roland Petit in 1949 and another by the Cuban choreographer Alberto Alonso in 1967, who used the music of The Carmen Suite by Rodión Shchedrin, a reorchestration of Bizet’s original score; Shchedrin was the husband of the Russian ballerina Maya Plisetskaya who performed as Carmen. After seeing this version, Carlos Acosta was subsequently influenced to create his own ballet. He used the same music, with added compositions by Martin Yates, Yhovani Duarte and Denis Peralta.

Carlos is now the Director of the Birmingham Royal Ballet (since 2020) as well as running Acosta Danza, which is based in Havana, Cuba, with the aim of developing the talent of brilliant young Cuban dancers. Carlos Acosta’s Carmen is now a great showcase for the vibrant and technically skilled dancers of the Acosta Danza company, highlighting their creativity and passionate flair. They present a distinctive blend of classical and contemporary dancing and are a Sadler’s Wells International Associate Company.

Carlos Acosta’s Carmen is an amazing evening.  If there are any spare tickets, it would be well worth buying one to experience its wonder and heat.

Carmen is showing at Sadler’s Wells from 2 – 6 July 2024.

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