Tonight I went to see a flamenco ballet performance of Carmen at Madrid's Teatro de Nuevo Apolo with my Italian coworker, her (American?!) friend, my German former coworker and her boyfriend.
It was fantastic. Carmen has never been one of the plays which really grabbed me, but this performance was different. The traditional score is nice, but it sort of thrusts itself upon you. This time was no different, although they mixed in traditional, Spanish flamenco music and dance. (The music was live! Real players sat behind a translucent screen towards the back of the stage.) Although I liked the scenes where there were men and women dressed in traditional flamenco dresses, my favorite scene was when the rival for Carmen's love was thrown into prison, and he danced out his passion and frustration by stepping as fast as humanly possible in a small circle.
En fin du compte, the live music and dancing were excellent. The story, though, was pretty weak, and the transitions from one scene to another incomprehensible.
You and me both girl! I found a flamenco class here in SLC, but haven't tried it yet. One day.
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