The Royal Opera House presents free opera for a limited time
Photo by Alev Takil on Unsplash
Distance can be a cruel beast. Not everyone in their lifetime will get the opportunity to see the ocean. To feel the beat beneath their feet at a concert. Have the crowd surge into cheers when their team wins the game. With technology some of those experiences are changing. While you might not be able to feel the sand between your toes, you can have experiences without leaving your room. The opera would be one of those.
Not everyone lives in a big city or can jump on a plane and get to the theater, but options are increasing. The Royal Opera House has made available, for a limited time, two plays on their YouTube channel. Bizet's Carmen and The Marriage of Figaro are free to watch for your viewing pleasure until August 1 and August 8 2019, respectively.
Barrie Kosky's Royal Opera production of Bizet's Carmen, recorded on 2 July 2019. This performance will be available on-demand until 1 August 2019.
Below is a synopsis about the play.
“Award-winning director Barrie Kosky provides a refreshing perspective on this well-known opera. He explores Carmen’s ever-changing nature -marked by her series of contrasting costumes - and her vitality through dance. The pre-recorded voice of a narrator (perhaps Carmen herself) ensures that we experience
the whole story from her perspective, and the production’s unique performing edition (by Michael Rot) offers a chance for audience members to hear music Bizet omitted from the opera’s first performances.
Carmen had only lukewarm success at its 1875 premiere - perhaps due to its unconventional subject -but soon became immensely popular, and has remained so. Its glorious score boasts a host of wonderful melodies, including Carmen’s sensual
Habanera and Seguidilla, Don José’s tender Flower Aria and Escamillo’s rousing Toreador’s Song. There are also passionate duologues, above all the intense, final confrontation between Carmen and Don José.”
The Marriage of Figaro in full from The Royal Opera. This video will be available until 8 August 2019.
Below is a synopsis about the play.
“Mozart’s great comic opera of intrigue,
misunderstanding and forgiveness stars Christian Gerhaher and Simon Keenlyside as the clever Figaro and his aristocratic master.
The operas’s score is packed full of wonderful music covering a huge range of emotions and for this production, director David McVicar sets the action
in a château in 1830 on the eve of France’s second revolution, exploring political and class conflicts, but also maintaining Mozart and librettist Da Ponte’s humanity and wit.”
A big shout out to Andy Ihnatko for talking about this gem.
