COLUMBUS, Ohio — Opera Columbus is preparing to kick off its season with an all-new adaption of the classic Bizet opera "Carmen."
"Our 23-24 season is titled 'Her Story, Her Vision,'" explained Julia Noulin-Mérat, the general director & CEO of Opera Columbus. "So, it's all about empowering women, really, and also changing a little bit the narrative in opera because, often, women are portrayed as victims, and we're tired of that. So, of course we had to tackle the ultimate femme fatale which is Carmen."
A story of love and passion, traditionally the opera "Carmen" is performed in four acts. For their modern re-imagining, Opera Columbus has distilled the story into 90 minutes by focusing on the main characters.
"We are really focusing on some of the main characters and where Carmen has power in the situations," explained Sarah Dahnke, the director of the re-imagined piece. "We don't want to victimize her; we want her to be able to have agency and own her fate a little bit."
The story still builds around the relationship between Carmen and Don José as well as the arrival of Escamillo who, traditionally, was a bull fighter, but has now been updated to become an F1 race car driver.
"He's still very sexy," promised Dahnke, "very European."
Noulin-Mérat takes pride in how deeply-rooted Opera Columbus is in the central Ohio arts community and highlights the partnerships with other local groups that will be on display in "Carmen" including dancers from the Gabriela Flamenco dance academy as well as musicians from the Columbus Symphony Orchestra.
"This is the most musicians you will ever see in the Southern Theatre pit and they're going to sound amazing," said Noulin-Mérat, "Combining all of these forces is going to create a really special performance."
Opera Columbus' "Carmen" takes the stage for only two days: Sept. 29 and Oct. 1st. For ticket information and to see their full season schedule, check out their website: https://www.operacolumbus.org/.