Theatre review: Opera in a Box’s Carmen

Love, lust – and a whole lot of jealousy: Opera in a Box bring Georges Bizet’s Carmen to The Station.

If you’re sick to death of love (or of having to explain to your parents why you don’t want to bring home ‘that boy that you’ve been seeing’) then I would advise buying them tickets to Carmen: they’ll be begging you to steer clear of all things romance for the foreseeable.

To keep it brief: Bizet’s opera tells the story of eponymous heroine Carmen as she navigates her way through (multiple) love affairs, risky smuggling operations – and a bad stroke of Fate. With a healthy dose of gossip, flirting, sword-fights and prison sentences, Carmen is a fast moving romp of an opera, which cautions against getting involved with your local military officer.

Despite its tragic climax (no spoilers here) Opera in a Box keep their production fun, light and accessible. Watching the show is similar to picking up a Pocket Shakespeare, or Bible for Beginners; the company perform a translated version of Bizet’s opera, meaning that you get to enjoy the story ­– and the impressive vibrato – without getting bogged down in the language. It’s still fairly traditional: there’s no tampering with when or where the story is set, so it’s corsets and long skirts for the girls, military jackets and velvet pantaloons for the boys. But a lively performance style makes sure that things feel fresh; if you’re wondering whether opera is for you, then this is the perfect production in which to dip a toe.

If you’re wondering whether opera is for you, then this is the perfect production in which to dip a toe

Staged in traverse, the company do a good job of making sure no audience member is left behind. Spinning about the space, performances are confident and bright throughout, with some audience participation here and there (but not in a scary way, I promise) to keep things fun. Emily Khatib’s and Rebecca de Coverly Veale are particularly entertaining as the catty Mercedes and Frasquita: feisty and flirtatious, they provide some lovely moments of comic relief.

“Love’s a thing no force can hold”, Bizet tutors his audience – and Opera in a Box’s Carmen is a thing no audience member can resist. Performing to a sold out auditorium, Opera in a Box have clearly succeeded in their mission to bring the opera genre to as wide an audience as possible. They’ve also succeeded in making me swear off love for a bit. Singles unite: it looks like we might be better off without him / her …

Carmen is playing at The Station until 27 February. Tickets are available from the Opera in a Box website: operainabox.com

Photography by Stewart McPherson