Carmen was never a love story.
Bizet’s iconic heroine is brought into contemporary Northern England in a bold new production shaped by women’s lived experiences.
This November, Atelier Armonico presents Carmen’s Voice, a new adaptation of Bizet’s iconic opera created in collaboration with IDAS, the largest specialist charity in the north of England supporting people impacted by domestic abuse and sexual violence. This production premieres on 25 November, coinciding with 16 Days of Activism against Gender-based Violence.
Bringing Carmen from nineteenth century Seville into contemporary Northern England, Carmen’s Voice invites audiences to see this familiar story through the lens of lived experience.
The production is developed through creative workshops with survivors of domestic and sexual abuse in Yorkshire, and places them at the heart of the artistic process. The women’s voices and perspectives have helped shape the themes, language, and dramatic world of the production, bringing Carmen’s story into a contemporary context.
For over 150 years, Carmen has remained one of opera's most iconic characters: fiercely independent, sexually liberated, and unwilling to be controlled. Yet her story ultimately ends in an act of violence at the hands of a man who refuses to accept her choice to leave him.
Rather than treating Carmen as a historical figure locked within a nineteenth century narrative, the production explores what her story can tell us about women’s experiences today and the ways in which women’s voices are heard, silenced, and reclaimed.
Carmen’s Voice strips back one of opera’s most popular stories, offering a rendition that focuses on the psychological and emotional journey of Carmen. The result is a thought-provoking adaptation that champions real women’s voices while retaining the extraordinary musical power of Bizet’s original work. Performed in English, this production features a 12 piece chamber orchestra giving audiences a unique and intimate experience of theatre rooted in reality.
Event description by organisers.
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