Festival Theatre, Malvern – 29th March 2026
Reviewed by Courie Amado Juneau
4****
Bizet’s masterpiece, Carmen, makes a sonically triumphant return to Malvern Theatres – brought to us this time by the Dnipro Opera.
The story concerns Don José falling for the obvious (though morally dubious) charms of Carmen, abandoning his former life (soldiering, a sweetheart and his elderly mother) and becoming jealous of the attention she garners wherever she goes which (being an opera) ends about as well as your standard Country Music tune.
The orchestra, masterfully conducted by Ihor Puchkov, were outstanding from first to last. They brought those familiar tunes to life with a sensual vibrancy that the composer would have undoubtedly been proud of. And the band were tight.
Don José (played by Teimuraz Parulava) was a believable leading man, with a towering presence. His singing was suitably muscular and full of testosterone (just like the character he was portraying). I particularly enjoyed his unleashed wrath in the scene where Carmen makes it known that her affections have moved on. A bravura performance.
Karyna Verezub, as Carmen, wastes no time getting straight into one of the most famous opera arias ever, the “Habanera”; a personal manifesto that perfectly (and rapidly) portrays why men everywhere should have had the good sense to run for the hills (and not the hills the smugglers are in later)! Verezub had a self confident air that served her characterization well – although I did think that more could have been done to play up the feline slinkiness that I have enjoyed so much in previous versions of Carmen.
There’s something about the twirling of hair, skirt and hands whilst castanets (or tambourines) are playing that makes the senses reel. Ah, España! Unfortunately, I felt that the production lacked a certain je ne sais quoi and it was in the crowd scenes that it was highlighted most keenly. There was a certain spicy, fiery… Spanishness just not there. What the flamenco artists call Duende. I just wasn’t convinced that I was watching Spaniards in full flow – it was the difference between watching a flamenco show for tourists compared with being in an authentic gypsy flamenco bar. A shame – but even so, all were in fine voice.
Escamillo (played by Andrii Lomakovych) provided an uproarious highlight; the “Toreador Song”, which was vocally spot on. And Micaela’s big moment comes with her third act aria, bringing the highlight of the evening for me – as Nadiia Yeremenko conveyed her character’s piercing internal anguish with impressively heartfelt singing that melted my heart!
The curtain descended to rousing applause and deserved ovations. The ending of the opera is a tragedy but the biggest tragedy of the night is that all these years on we continue to find ourselves standing in solidarity with the Ukraine in their defence of their homeland. I hope our applause and cheers conveyed to all involved how much support they still receive from us – and may we have an end to this dreadful war before they return.
This opera, like Spain, is gorgeous, alluring and untamed! Although it did fall slightly short in the rousing Iberian passion stakes, musically it was a total triumph! I cannot wait for this company to return with their next series.