Downtown Dell'Arte Opera Ensemble occupies Carmen.
by Paul J. Pelkonen
George Bizet's Carmen is often mounted as grand opera, with crowds of milling orange sellers, bandallerias and marching children creating a whirlwind portrait of life in 19th century Seville. This new production by Christopher Fecteau's Dell'Arte Opera Ensemble (part of the company's summer repertory project) takes the opposite approach.
Using the confines of the black-box 13th St. Theater to maximum advantage, director Knud Adams added elements all too familiar to New Yorkers conversant with the Occupy Wall Street protests. Citizens were repeatedly "kettled" and threatened with pepper spray. Don José (Adam Juran) was a riot control cop with safety vest and ready baton. Carmen (Elizabeth Shoup) was a lithesome leather-jacketed presence with an attitude to match, surrounded by an admiring throng of police, punks and riot grrls.
Dell'Arte's summer Standard Repertoire Project is geared toward helping younger singers move from the conservatory environment into the professional world. This was Ms. Shoup's debut in the complex title role, and she brought a dry, matter-of-fact edge to this familiar character. Although her singing was strongest in the two famous arias in Act I, she compensated with go-to-hell attitude and a refreshing lack of the standard clichés associated with this famous character.
by Paul J. Pelkonen
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| A fresh approach to bullfighting at Dell'Arte Opera Ensemble's "occupied" Carmen. Photo amalgamation by the author, who does not endorse bullfighting or pepper spray. |
Using the confines of the black-box 13th St. Theater to maximum advantage, director Knud Adams added elements all too familiar to New Yorkers conversant with the Occupy Wall Street protests. Citizens were repeatedly "kettled" and threatened with pepper spray. Don José (Adam Juran) was a riot control cop with safety vest and ready baton. Carmen (Elizabeth Shoup) was a lithesome leather-jacketed presence with an attitude to match, surrounded by an admiring throng of police, punks and riot grrls.
Dell'Arte's summer Standard Repertoire Project is geared toward helping younger singers move from the conservatory environment into the professional world. This was Ms. Shoup's debut in the complex title role, and she brought a dry, matter-of-fact edge to this familiar character. Although her singing was strongest in the two famous arias in Act I, she compensated with go-to-hell attitude and a refreshing lack of the standard clichés associated with this famous character.
