Carmen the Opera

Due to religious reasons, I was unable to attend the class where the guest, Amanda, came to introduce the art of opera to us. Therefore, my perception of the opera before that Thursday made a complete 180 degree change once I actually saw it. I expected to watch a single woman dressed in an elegant attire sing “opera” for three hours straight without any interaction with other characters. I thought the ONLY pre-requisite to perform in the opera was to just be able to sing with a distinctly powerful voice. But I was so wrong.

When the curtain was raised, I was confused to see multiple men on stage. Already I knew that this performance was not going to meet my expectations in any way. There were so many aspects that I appreciated at the end of the show- the acting, the obvious vocal talent, the scenery, the costumes, the dances, and most importantly, the perfectly captured emotions. I enjoyed my time in the opera more than I thought I would. I really appreciated that the venue provided us with subtitles in front of us because without them, it would have been way too difficult for me to understand what was going on. However, our seats were rather high and so I didn’t have such a great view of the actual performance.

[The woman who played] Carmen’s ability to show her emotions was undeniable. Even though we were so high up, I still felt her passion. She was a little too provocative for my taste (giggle), but she was really able t0 insert so much drama into the performance. Don Jose bothered me a little with his constant mentioning of his homeland and his mother, but he too was able to give his character the appropriate emotion he deserved.

In class we discussed how the opera being in French obstructed our understanding of the content. I definitely agree with that concept, but would like to just add that this language is so beautiful that I think if it were to be in English, it wouldn’t be as audibly pleasing.

I honestly don’t think I’ll be running with excitement to my next opera experience because of its length and my preference of broadway shows. However, it feels incredible that I can say that I’ve been to an opera at all. It’s something that I’ve always been curious about and I feel very accomplished that I did it. I feel more cultured in a way and it’s really awesome. Thanks Professor Ugoretz!