Prom 52: Bizet - Carmen (Glyndebourne Prom), LPO, Chaieb / E.L. Johnson / Bihlmaier

[bluestateprommer]

Thursday 29 August 2024
18:30
Royal Albert Hall

Georges Bizet, Henri Meilhac and Ludovic Halévy: Carmen (opera in four acts; semi-staged)

Rihab Chaieb, mezzo-soprano (Carmen; Proms debut artist)
Evan LeRoy Johnson, tenor (Don José; Proms debut artist)
Lukasz Goliński, baritone (Escamillo; Proms debut artist)
Janai Brugger, soprano (Micaëla; Proms debut artist)
Dingle Yandell, bass (Zuniga)
Thomas Mole, baritone (Moralès; Proms debut artist)
Elisabeth Boudreault, soprano (Frasquita; Proms debut artist)
Kezia Bienek, mezzo-soprano (Mercédès; Proms debut artist)
Loïc Félix, baritone (Le Dancaïre; Proms debut artist)
François Piolino, tenor (Le Remendado; Proms debut artist)
Esteban Lecoq (Lillas Pastia; Proms debut artist)
John Mackenzie-Lavansch (Le Guide)

Adam Torrance, concert stage director (Proms debut artist)

Chorus of Glyndebourne Festival Opera
Children from Glyndebourne Youth Chorus and Trinity Boys' Choir
London Philharmonic Orchestra
Anja Bihlmaier, conductor

https://www.bbc.co.uk/events/eq9j6q

https://www.royalalberthall.com/tickets/proms/bbc-proms-24/prom-52/

https://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/m002250t

[bluestateprommer]

Acts I and II sound pretty good so far. I didn't know anything in particular ahead of time about the Glyndebourne production, so it was a bit of a surprise to hear spoken dialogue, i.e. closer to the original opera-comique version. Perhaps I shouldn't be surprised, as the recent Zurich Opera production by Andreas Homoki (saw it via OperaVision) also featured spoken dialogue. I don't know enough about world-wide performances of Carmen to know if the use of spoken dialogue might be a mini-trend. Enjoyable interval discussion between Sarah Linton and Martin Handley.

[Darkbloom]

I thought it was usually done with spoken dialogue. I've never heard it done as recit. I'm enjoying it (in the hall) with reservations. I don't think the conducting is much more than capable, no more. Don Jose is a big guy and a fine singer but is no Jon Vickers when it comes to intensity. Carmen is OK but isn't charismatic enough for me. Some of the best singing is coming from the Zuniga, who has a very fine baritone. Still, it's an incredible masterpiece and even a half-decent performance is going to make an impression.

[oliver sudden]

As I understand, it was written with spoken dialogue and the recits were added later by Ernest Guiraud.

This may be of interest by the way…

https://youtu.be/4Spsofdiu7A?feature=shared

[LHC]

I don't think the Guiraud recitatives have been used for decades by any opera company in the UK. I've only ever heard them used on older recordings.

[Ein Heldenleben]

I thought it was usually done with spoken dialogue. I've never heard it done as recit. I'm enjoying it (in the hall) with reservations. I don't think the conducting is much more than capable, no more. Don Jose is a big guy and a fine singer but is no Jon Vickers when it comes to intensity. Carmen is OK but isn't charismatic enough for me. Some of the best singing is coming from the Zuniga, who has a very fine baritone. Still, it's an incredible masterpiece and even a half-decent performance is going to make an impression.

Joined late for Act 3 - singing good but one wonders what Jurowski or Gardner might have achieved in terms of musico-dramatic intensity…

[Darkbloom]

Joined late for Act 3 - singing good but one wonders what Jurowski or Gardner might have achieved in terms of musico-dramatic intensity…

It really makes you appreciate what top conductors can do, even if you're not sure how they do it. You're just engaged. It reminded me of one of those nights at the opera house where the staff conductor is given a couple of performances at the end of the run. It's tidy but feels flat and you can tell the band are going through the motions.

I don't know what other roles the tenor has in his repertoire but I hope he sticks to lyric ones and isn't tempted to try Wagner.

[Retune]

A couple of reviews:

https://www.theartsdesk.com/opera/prom-52-carmen-glyndebourne-festival-review-fine-tuning-masterpiece

https://www.planethugill.com/2024/08/prom-52-intelligent-vivid-satisfying.html

I thought it was great. For me, Chaieb has charisma to burn and there were fine vocal performances in all the major roles. 'Semi-staged' at the Proms too often means little more than a concert, but there was nothing static about this production, fully acted and choreographed with all the props and costumes and lighting you could ask for, the higher levels of the stage used to advantage by the chorus, and clear surtitles. The denouement was as shocking as it should be, with Don José at the end a coercive controlling killer rather than a tragic hero.