This is the last week for the Boston Lyric Opera’s production of Carmen. Six of us went on Sunday afternoon and were favorably impressed.
What is the point of a regional opera company? Grab a recording from the 1970s and you can hear better singers. For that matter, what is the point of a national opera company? Grab a video from the 1970s and the singing and sets will be just as good. Why pay $100+ per seat for something that can be streamed for pennies?
The Boston Lyric Opera’s current production, which will be performed a couple more times this week, actually adds a lot compared to what opera companies were doing in the 20th century.
The text of the opera is all about “love” and yet the characters are intimately involved with each other after only the briefest of acquaintances. The BLO asks, via the action on stage, “What if it is really about sex?”
The men on stage are constantly trying to get sex from the women. The women, even those just entering adolescence, are constantly trying to get cash from the men. When the men aren’t getting what they want they resort to physical force. When the women aren’t getting what they want they resort to lies, deception, and cunning.
The BLO reminds the audience that the opera has only two characters that might conceivably be considered virtuous. There is the on-stage Micaela, Don Jose’s fiancé from the village, and the off-stage sainted mother of Don Jose. Everyone else is corrupt, with the men willing to do almost anything for sex and the women willing to do almost anything for money.
Staging is kind of minimal and relies heavily on some classic Mercedes cars that are rolled around by the actors. This is an idea that I haven’t seen before. If you put old-style (non-radial) tires on a car it is quite easy to push, fills up a good portion of the stage, and lets the actors do a bunch of dramatic stuff. Compliments to the BLO and San Francisco Opera (it is a joint production) who thought of this expedient. Certainly the opera set designers of the 20th century were working way too hard.
Why would a car be harder to push with radial tires, provided they are properly inflated?
What is the point of a local strip club? Grab a recording Showgirls and you can see better strippers.