I wasn’t sure what to expect from Carmen. I’d never seen an opera before, and I was a little dubious about “enjoying” it. I tried to remain open-minded about the experience; after all, I hadn’t paid for it so I wasn’t losing anything by being there. The show began and I, having forgotten my glasses and therefore blind, found myself losing track of characters simply because I couldn’t tell people apart. I don’t think my glasses would’ve helped much; the distance was just too much. I decided that I’d just read the subtitles in front of me when I realized my subtitles were lagging. I attempted to turn them off, thinking I’d just listen to the music, only to make them freeze in Spanish. Now completely lost, Carmen did very little to keep me engaged and I found myself growing bored with it. I could appreciate the singing, because my voice can’t do that, but I couldn’t stay attentive. I’d skimmed the act synopsis before the lights dimmed but by now I wasn’t recalling any of it. I started violently jabbing my subtitle button in an effort to unfreeze it and had limited success – I returned the subtitles to English, but they lagged for a while before freezing again. When intermission came, my neighbors and I compared what we believed the plot to be, only to check the synopsis and realize how wrong we were. I jabbed my button with more vigor and anger and managed to get them to behave.

Subtitles fixed, I was able to remain engaged for the remainder of the opera. I didn’t feel like I had missed anything from the first two acts and was able to follow along. Now aware of what was happening, I found myself growing annoyed with Don Jose. His character didn’t seem to be capable of critical thinking and spent what seemed like the whole show changing his mind at the drop of a hat. I grew frustrated with his behavior towards Carmen. Make up your mind, man! Carmen herself was also trying my patience. I was utterly unsure of whether or not her “love” for Escamillo was sincere or not. Was she declaring her love for him to Don Jose’s face because she truly was in love? Or was she just trying to push Don Jose’s buttons? I couldn’t tell.

If there was one thing I did like about Carmen, it was Micaela. I, as a soprano, really admired her voice and her stage presence. She was also the character I sympathized most with. Her aria in them mountains blew me away (and luckily my subtitles were working for it!) I felt so bad for her, she traveled into a bandit’s den searching for the man she loves only to watch him refuse to leave Carmen, or at least until he hears his mother is dying. I wish Micaela had more to do in Carmen, and her lack of involvement did disappoint me a little.

Overall, I don’t really think opera is a dying art form. The opera house was packed with people of all ages. Our tickets in the nosebleeds weren’t outrageously expensive, so I’d say that those with a limited budget could still afford the opera if they really wanted to and were willing to sacrifice sight. The subtitles – when functioning – also make the opera more accessible to everyone. I think that the idea that opera is boring and old keeps younger crowds away, but if people are exposed to opera their minds might change. I don’t think opera is stuffy and old anymore at least.