Synopsis

A Brief Synopsis of Carmen

Act I

The scene is a plaza outside a cigarette factory in Seville, sometime in the 1820s. Soldiers on duty eye Micaela, a newcomer. She’s looking for Don José, an army corporal from her home town. Don José and Capt. Zuniga arrive with the changing of the guard. A bell rings and women from the cigarette factory pour into the plaza for a work break.

Last to appear is the beautiful and sultry Carmen, who flirts with her soldier admirers (Habanera). José ignores her, however, and that gets the possessive Carmen’s attention. She tosses him a flower. Micaela gives José a letter from his mother and adds a kiss. The two sing a heartfelt duet (Parle-moi de ma mère.)

The cigarette girls scream. There’s a fight in the factory and Carmen has slashed the face of another girl. On Zuniga’s order, Don José takes Carmen into custody but she turns on the charm (Seguidilla) with promises of love and good times if he lets her escape. He loosens the rope around her wrists and she flees. Don José is arrested for dereliction of duty.

Act II

It’s two months later and Carmen and her smuggler friends are drinking at Lillas Pastia’s tavern. Carmen and her friends Mercedes and Frasquita sing a frenzied gypsy song. Zuniga tells Carmen that Don José has been released from jail. The matador Escamillo arrives and sings of life in the bull ring (Toreador song). Everyone swoons at his bravura but Carmen remains aloof.

Carmen and her gypsy friends sing a delightful quintet about an upcoming heist,(Nous avons en tête une affaire), noting that women are the key to any successful conspiracy.

Don José arrives and Carmen dances for him. A bugle sounds and José says he must return to barracks. A furious Carmen replies that if he truly loves her, he’ll desert the army and flee with her to the mountains. Don José replies with the passionate Flower Song, (La fleur que tu m’avais jetée), telling Carmen that the scent of the flower she gave him at their first meeting sustained him in prison.

Zuniga, hoping for a tryst with Carmen, shows up and tells José to get lost. José refuses and Zuniga threatens him. Carmen calls on her friends for help. They disarm Zuniga and take him away. His military career now in ruins, Don José flees with the gypsies to their mountain hideaway.

Act III

In the smuggler’s mountain camp, Don José is distracted by thoughts of his mother. Carmen is unimpressed with the sentiment. You made your choice so live with it, she tells him. Frasquita and Mercedes are reading their fortunes with a deck of cards. Carmen tries her luck but repeatedly draws the death card. It’s my destiny, she sings. The cards don’t lie.

The smugglers break camp. Micaela arrives and in a lovely aria, (Je dis que rien ne m’épouvante), admits her fear of the wild mountains and prays for the strength to win back Don José. Suddenly, José, who has been left on guard duty, fires a warning shot. Micaela flees but the shot is meant for Escamillo who tells José sorry, but he’s arrived to claim Carmen. The two men fight. Carmen swoops in and breaks it up, saving Escamillo’s life. The matador leaves, reminding everyone of his upcoming bullfight in Seville.

Carmen, now clearly in love with Escamillo, tells Don José to leave. Micaela adds to the pain, telling José his mother is dying. Warning Carmen that they will meet again, an angry and humiliated Don José departs for home. In the distance, Escamillo is heard singing a phrase of the Toreador Song.

Act IV

It’s the day of the bullfight. Escamillo and Carmen, now a couple, arrive to a stirring march (Les voici!) Frasquita and Mercedes warn Carmen that Don José is lurking around. The two former lovers meet outside the bull ring and José, now an emotional wreck, begs Carmen to take him back. Carmen refuses, saying she loves Escamillo.

She pulls José’s ring from her finger and throws it at his feet. The crowd roars as Escamillo kills the bull. Carmen pushes past José to find Escamillo and is stabbed. “I killed the one I love,” Don José cries, cradling her body. “Oh my Carmen. How I loved you.”

- Gene Carlson