Kent bows out with the Gypsy Queen

Carmen, Opera House Manchester

Bizet’s Carmen is a tale of love, betrayal, jealousy and death, and one which is set on fire with this Ellen Kent production.

The dark gypsy looks of Zarui Vardanean, coupled with her full-bodied voice, lend themselves perfectly to the title role.

The hot-blooded gypsy girl loves with a passion, finding it all too easy to entice men under her spell, but the gift is ultimately her undoing as she unleashes an obsession in Don Jose, magnificently played by Irakli Grigali, which smoulders and burns, despite her tiring of him as a lover.

He is a man in conflict, torn between his ageing mother and his mesmerising lover, but thinks nothing of tossing aside the girl who was his before, as he fell under Carmen’s spell
“Carmen’s romances never last more than six months” was a telling line, hinting at the trail of broken hearts left in her wake.

Zarui leads a cast of strong singers, and it is difficult to choose between her Carmen, Irakli’s Don Jose and Igor Sviridov’s Escamillo, the great toreador and “other love” in Carmen’s life, as to whom gives the best performance.

All three are a joy to watch as they sing their way through the unmistakable music of Carmen, but Igor has a smaller part, with Irakli getting the lion’s share of the pair’s performances.

Beautiful costumes worn by Carmen and the other gypsy girls turned the stage into a riot of colour.

But I would have expected the gypsy men to have been slightly wilder, particularly as they were supposed to have been brought up handling the hot-headed girls, none of whom looked like they would take “no” for an answer.

An unexpected twist saw international flamenco dancer Samantha Quy introduce her own ideas into the production, and she gave a solid performance littered throughout what felt like a rather lengthy show, aided by traditional Spanish singer Fernando de Sevilla.

The pair are touring with Carmen, but appearing at only a selected number of performances.

It is a pity the show will be the last for some time from Kent, who is taking a break from the tours which have made her one of the most popular producers of opera in the country.

The two-day show will also run tonight, and there is probably still chance to get a ticket.