Carmen arrives at the Teatro de la Maestranza in Seville: The myth returns home
If there is one opera that carries the name of Seville around the world, it is Carmen. And when Carmen arrives at the Teatro de la Maestranza in Seville, it is not just another performance: it is a reunion, a tribute, a celebration. From June 13th to 21st, 2025, the Sevillian coliseum hosts six performances of Georges Bizet's masterpiece to commemorate the 150th anniversary of its premiere and the death of its composer. Get ready, because Carmen arrives at the Teatro de la Maestranza in Seville to stay in your memory.
📅 When can we see Carmen at the Maestranza?
Carmen arrives at the Teatro de la Maestranza in Seville with a total of six scheduled performances:
June 13, 17, 18, 20 and 21 at 8:00 p.m.
June 15 at 7:00 p.m.
There are only six opportunities to enjoy this production, so if you don't want to miss out on tickets, you know what to do: hurry!
🏛️ What is the Teatro de la Maestranza?
Before talking about the opera, let me introduce you to the stage that hosts it. The Teatro de la Maestranza is the great lyric coliseum in Seville. Inaugurated in 1991 with a performance of Mozart's Don Giovanni, it was built for the 1992 Seville Universal Exposition. It was designed by architects Aurelio del Pozo and Luis Marín, and is located in the emblematic Arenal district, next to the Plaza de Toros de la Real Maestranza, from which it takes its name.
With a capacity for 1,800 spectators, the Teatro de la Maestranza stands out for its exceptional acoustics and its stage, one of the largest in Spain. Since its opening, it has hosted figures of the stature of Plácido Domingo, Montserrat Caballé and Zubin Mehta, and has established itself as one of the reference opera theatres in the country. That is why, when Carmen arrives at the Teatro de la Maestranza in Seville, she comes to a place that breathes music and tradition through and through.
🎭 What is the opera Carmen?
Carmen is a dramatic opera in four acts composed by the Frenchman Georges Bizet, with a libretto by Henri Meilhac and Ludovic Halévy, based on the novel of the same name by Prosper Mérimée. It premiered at the Opéra-Comique in Paris on March 3, 1875 and, curiously, it was a scandal at the time. Its plot, set in Seville around 1820, portrays the life of the lower classes, smugglers and gypsies, with a female protagonist who is free, independent and unapologetic. This clashed with the more conservative audience of the time.
The story is well known: Carmen, a gypsy woman of fierce temperament, seduces Corporal Don José, an inexperienced soldier. Their relationship leads Don José to abandon his girlfriend, mutiny against his superior and join a band of smugglers. But when Carmen falls in love with the bullfighter Escamillo, jealousy drives Don José to commit a crime of passion.
Bizet died of a heart attack at the age of 36, just after the 33rd performance, never knowing the worldwide success his work would achieve. Today, Carmen is one of the most popular and performed operas in the world, with arias as well-known as the "Habanera" (L'amour est un oiseau rebelle) or the "Toreador Song".
🎶 Why does Carmen arrive at the Teatro de la Maestranza in Seville in 2025?
The answer is twofold: commemoration and emotional bond. 2025 marks the 150th anniversary of the opera's premiere and Bizet's death. And what better place to celebrate it than Seville, the city where the action takes place and which gives its name to its protagonist.
The Teatro de la Maestranza itself expresses it thus on its website: "Carmen the cigarette maker, Carmen beyond the myth, Carmen passion, Carmen independence, Carmen freedom of body and soul, Carmen: The Woman. Carmen of Seville. Seville of Carmen. Seville, of the working women riding the first wave of feminism when no one had yet given it a name". That is why, when Carmen arrives at the Teatro de la Maestranza in Seville, it is not just any visit: it is the return home of a myth.
The theatre has prepared this production with "the same passion and joy with which Seville makes this opera part of its identity". Not in vain, the Maestranza had programmed Carmen before: its premiere in this theatre was in 1992, and the last time it was performed was in 2021.
🎤 Who makes Carmen arrive at the Teatro de la Maestranza in Seville? Cast and artistic team
The production we will see at the Maestranza comes from the Auditorio de la Diputación de Alicante (ADDA), but has a very special stamp. Stage direction and costume design are by Emilio Sagi, an essential name on the Spanish opera scene, who has been artistic director of the Teatro Real in Madrid and the Arriaga in Bilbao. Set design is by Daniel Bianco, lighting by Eduardo Bravo and choreography by Nuria Castejón.
On the musical side, musical direction is shared by Jacques Lacombe and Salvador Vázquez (the latter for the performances on 18 and 20 June). And, of course, we have the Royal Symphony Orchestra of Seville, the Choir of the Teatro de la Maestranza (directed by Iñigo Sampil) and the Escolanía de Los Palacios (directed by Enrique Cabello).
Regarding the cast of artists, the production has a double cast to bring the main characters to life:
- Carmen: Maria Kataeva (Gabriela Flores on 18 and 20 June).
- Don José: Piero Pretti (Alejandro del Cerro on 18 and 20 June).
- Micaela: Giuliana Gianfaldoni (Maria Miró on 18 and 20 June).
- Escamillo: Dalibor Jenis (Badral Chuluunbaatar on 18 and 20 June).
- Completing the cast are Mercedes Arcuri (Frasquita), Anna Gomà (Mercedes), Javier Castañeda (Zúñiga), Alejandro Sánchez (Morales), Pablo Gálvez (Dancaire) and Pablo García-López (Remendado).
👑 What does the opera Carmen represent for the city of Seville?
For Seville, Carmen is much more than an opera. It is a symbol of identity, a cultural ambassador that has carried the name of the city to every corner of the planet. Although the story was created by a Frenchman based on the novel by another Frenchman, the truth is that the image of Seville in the collective imagination is inextricably linked to the figure of the cigarette maker.
The Maestranza defines it perfectly: "Carmen as ambassador of a Seville that was and is avant-garde and that continues to defend the right, also, to beauty". In addition, the opera represents values that resonate strongly today: women's freedom, independence, sovereignty over one's own body and the defence of an authentic life, even at the risk of everything.
🎟️ Parallel activities around Carmen
If you want to immerse yourself even more in the universe of Carmen, the Maestranza and the Sevillian Association of Friends of the Opera (ASAO) have prepared some parallel activities:
- June 12, 7:00 p.m. - Around... Carmen: Talk in the Press Room (access via reception) with Emilio Sagi and Salvador Vázquez. Free admission until full capacity is reached.
- June 5, 8:00 p.m. - ÓPERA(ciónGar)CÍA. Carmen: a myth of Seville: In the Manuel García Room.
- June 10, 8:00 p.m. - Young people's preview of Carmen.
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