A rabbit caught in the headlights

Categories: journal

Date: 19 October 2010 08:53:40

Jose (the hero (?) of Bizet's Carmen) seemed to me to be just that - young, frightened, fascinated - but pity Carmen, who had him under her spell, then tired of him. The drama was deeply involving - after the show, Hannah asked me, "Did he mean to kill her?" (apologies for the spoiler, but not many people who see this opera don't know how it ends) to which I could only answer, "You could spend the rest of your life trying to work that out ..."

Was somewhat disconcerted, when we arrived, to find that our seats were directly behind a piano - but it wasn't a problem, and I'm sure that if the (excellent) pianist (/ conductor) had encountered difficulties, I could have reached over and helped with the twiddly bits.

Full of praise for this production (Scottish Opera are touring Scotland) - tense, inexorable, the momentum sustained throughout - and with the bonus of Welsh singers in both of the lead roles - what more could you ask?