CARMEN
The plot of Prosper Mérimée's novella was so attractive for musical theatre that back in 1845, before Georges Bizet's opera appeared, Marius Petipa staged a ballet called "Carmen and the Toreador" based on the plot of this novella at the Madrid Teatro del Circo.
In the 20th century, the ballet, already based on the music of Bizet’s opera, was staged several times in the USSR and the USA by different choreographers in their own interpretations.
In 1949, the ballet "Carmen" was staged by the famous French choreographer Roland Petit (1924-2011) at the "Ballet de Paris" theatre company. The premiere of the ballet took place on tour in London on February 21, 1949.
Brief summary of the performance:
I Action
I Picture
A town square with a tobacco factory on one side and a soldier's post on the other. A worker, the gypsy Carmen, comes out of the factory gates. She is beautiful and therefore attracts the attention of men. After a while, the guard changes at the post and a young soldier, Jose, takes up his duties. The gypsy immediately likes the handsome man in uniform and persistently tries to seduce him. The girl's charms work and the soldier falls passionately in love with her.
Some time later, Carmen is accused of starting a fight between factory workers, and Jose is tasked with escorting the gypsy to prison. He cannot control his feelings and lets her go, thereby also committing a crime. In order to be with his beloved, the young soldier decides to run away, but soon the freedom-loving gypsy loses interest in Jose, and she begins to flirt with the public's favorite, the brilliant Torero. Seeing this, the enamoured soldier burns with jealousy, and when Corrigidor finds him to return him to the barracks, he drives him away in a rage.
Observing what happened and appreciating the act of José, who is ready to sacrifice his honor and obligations for her sake, Carmen is ready to make him happy with her love again. A little later, having decided to find out her future fate, Carmen tells her fortune on the cards. Before her eyes appears Rock, who foretells the tragic outcome of her life, but the gypsy does not take this into account. She again turns her gaze to the magnificent Torero, who bravely fights in the arena with the combined image of the bull and the image of Rock.
Carmen, delighted by the performance, pays no attention to José, who insistently demands that the girl return to him. The independent gypsy decisively rejects the soldier, which provokes his furious anger. Distraught at the thought that his beloved no longer belongs to him, José stabs Carmen with a dagger in a passionate outburst.
