Last Updated on February 7, 2026
A Stellar Cast for Carmen Brings the Opera to Life.
4.8 out of 5.0 starsLast year’s new production of Carmen from Damiano Michieletto won critical acclaim. Directed as a verismo piece, Michieletto adds detail to the famous plot so that even if you think you know the story, there will always be something to catch your eye. Set in the structural frame of ‘Opera Comique’ and infused with the spirit of the Zarzuela, the Spanish musical theatre that helped define the country’s national identity, this is a Carmen that will transport you to Spain within minutes of the curtain rising.
An opera in four acts, the story of Carmen is taken from Prosper Mérimée’s novella and turned into a libretto written by Henri Meilhac and Ludovic Halévy. Premiered in 1875 at the Opéra-Comique in Paris and not immediately successful, Bizet didn’t live long enough to see the opera become a central pillar of the repertoire. Set in the sultry heat of Seville, the opera’s narrative is constructed around the tragic love affair between Carmen, a gipsy, and Don José, a lower-ranking soldier. He is imprisoned for helping Carmen to escape incarceration for her part in a fight. On his release, she convinces the naïve soldier to run off with her and join a band of smugglers. The other two main protagonists are Don José’s childhood sweetheart Micaëla, an orphan who has been brought up by his mother and who acts as the maternal mouthpiece, and Escamillo, the local star bullfighter who has the hots for Carmen. She leaves Don José for Escamillo, and the inevitable tragedy ensues.
Michieletto’s Carmen is a production where the acting is every bit as critical as the music. The fabulous Children’s Chorus, supplemented by a few younger actors, set the scene. The older children bait and terrify the younger ones, girls pout provocatively, the kids ride bikes across the stage, and they all hammer on the vending machines in the hope of a free bar of chocolate. And, throughout the show, they provide the context of time, telling us where we are in the story on cardboard posters. Paolo Fantin’s sets are apparently simple and stripped back but clever and effective. Each act uses the same inner construction – a revolving room that acts as a police station, nightclub, warehouse and dressing room, while outside we may be in the heart of Seville or the remote hills that surround the Spanish city.
Reprising last year’s success in the title role, Russian mezzo-soprano Aigul Akhmetshina could have been born to sing Carmen. An ex Jette Parker artist (2017-19), she even sang the role at that time as part of a Jette Parker production at Wilton’s Music Hall. Last year, on the main stage at the Royal Opera House, she swept the floor with Polish tenor Piotr Beczala as Don José. Nominated for the 2025 Olivier Award for Outstanding Achievement in Opera for her performance as Carmen in The Royal Opera’s production last year, this year her Don José is the young British/Italian tenor Freddie di Tommaso, who came to fame when, at the Royal Opera House, he stepped into the role of Cavaradossi in Tosca mid-performance. At 28, he was the youngest ever tenor to perform the role at the Opera House and the first Brit since 1963.
Playing an ‘Ugly Betty’ styled Micaëla, Chilean soprano Yaritza Véliz (another ex Jette Parker artist) was impressive, bringing to life the pious character with a glorious lyric soprano voice that glistened beautifully in the duet “Parle-moi de ma mère!” with Don José.
Łukasz Goliński as Escamillo sang immaculately but perhaps lacked the passion we’ve come to expect from Don José’s rival. His Toreador Song ‘Votre toast, je peux vous le rendre’ felt just a little restrained and lacking in Machiavellian energy.
Current Jette Parker Artists Marianna Hovanisyan and Jingwen Cai sparkled as Carmen’s girlfriends Frasquita and Mercédès, with their trio “Les tringles des sistres tintaient” being a vocal highlight as they danced in a hybrid flamenco-disco style.
Notable, too, was British bass Jamie Wollard, another Jette Parker artist, singing Zuniga. Impressively characterised, he made the role his own – swaggering but with just a hint of English gentleman officer.
El Remendado and El Dancaïro are the head of the gypsy’s smuggling. Convincingly played by Ryan Vaughan Davies and Siphe Kwani, more talent from the 2024/25 Jette Parker programme, they provide the perfect foil for Akhmetshina’s stunning Carmen and, together with Marianna Hovanisyan and Jingwen Cai make a fabulous gypsy quintet.
But, this opera is made by the two leads. Akhmetshina is an outstanding mezzo with impeccable tuning, a wonderful lyricism and an amazing dynamic range. In full voice, she is truly fabulous, but it’s her ability to pull back to a more subtle dynamic without losing quality that makes her so special. Acting brilliantly as her foil, Di Tomasso came into his own with a sensitive and lyrical flower song that had the audience in raptures.
Take one excellent and beautifully executed production of a much loved opera, add a couple of amazing lead singers, complemented by a cast who can not only sing but can act, and you have a show worth seeing. There were moments when the impeccably coordinated orchestra seemed just a little overwhelming for some of the vocalists – perhaps because both Akhmetshina and Véliz are powerful singers. Occasionally, too, the chorus seemed less on form than we’ve come to expect. But as a whole, this is a stellar production, worth seeing for the leads, for the supporting roles, all brilliant in their own right and for the atmospheric, innovative and entrancing staging from Michieletto and Fantin.
11 April 2025 – 3 July 2025
Royal Opera House
Bow Street,
Covent Garden
London WC2E 9DD
Leave a Reply