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Carmen
Malvern Theatres
***** BIZET will probably not have anticipated
the arrival on stage of a huge white charger ridden by a Spanish soldier
and dancing to the rhythms of the orchestra! The less extrovert arrival at two points of a
donkey was one thing, but the majestic presence of this magnificent
horse raising his hooves and tapping his shoes to the music was a touch
of circus to enrich the evening’s entertainment. The audience loved it! It is not difficult to understand why the 19th
Century audience in Paris were rather shocked by the opera when it was
first performed. Carmen, the archetypal femme fatale, is a morally
shocking heroine, voluptuous, sensual and devoid of faithfulness. She lures Don Jose with her charms only to
discard him cruelly in favour of the great toreador Escamillo. The
abruptness of the fatal conclusion may be just deserts, but we are lured
as an audience into delighting in her voluptuousness nonetheless. The scale of Ellen Kent’s production is
impressive in these days when so many plays have to work with small
casts. The final curtain call did not include a fair proportion of the
cast who are also not included in the cast list. For example we were
enchanted to see a dozen children swelling the crowds at the festival
early in the play.
The lovely and imposing set presented us with the
gates of a Spanish town and a hint of the warmer Mediterranean climate
we have been missing over the winter in this part of the world! The
scene was classical, grand and warm. The costumes were likewise colourful, varied and
exciting. The soldiers in their blue and gold uniforms, the locals in
the bright reds, whites and creams, contrasted with the dark cloaks of
the smugglers in Act Three. The visual impressions were excellent. Bizet’s music is sublime. The orchestra performed
with great energy and yet sensitivity. The gentle tones of the harp
complementing the boldness of the percussion section were all conducted
with passion and at times tenderness by the conductor, Vasyl Vasylenko. The performances were of course led and dominated
by the lead provided by Liza Kadelnik as Carmen. Her seductive
performance was outstanding and she sang beautifully. She controlled the
stage and looked perfect for the part. As Don Jose, Vitality
Liskovetskiy sang well but lacked the physical presence to be the ideal
and charming male lead. Iurie Gisca as Escamillo was strong and
convincing, if a touch mature in age. Micaela was played by Alyona
Kistenyova: she is the most honourable character and a victim of Don
Jose’s waywardness. Her singing was a bit shrill at times for the most
pitiable character in the story, but her rendering of the ‘Weeping
Mother’ was moving and powerful. We are indebted to Ellen Kent and the Orchestra
and National Opera & Ballet Company of Moldova for this touring
production. It was lavish, classical, extravagant and musically rich. A
wonderful evening. Tim Crow 26-3-16
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