Carmen [Blu-ray]

Description

In 2008 the Opernhaus Zurich staged this magnificent production starring virtuoso tenor Jonas Kaufmann as Don José and the Bulgarian Vesselina Kasarova as the flirtatious prima-donna of the title roleMezzo-soprano Kasarova is dazzling as the tough-as-nails, beautifully unsentimental heroine think classic Sophia Loren meets West Side StoryKaufmann, in the guise of a Spanish police officer, brilliantly portrays the blustering but naive Don José as a modern contrast of hard-edged machismo and out-of-his-depths vulnerabilityDirector Matthias Hartmann refreshed one of the greatest and most popular operas of all time with touches of a contemporary setting and costume designs that emphasize the timeless archetypes of the charactersThis production of Carmen enthralled audiences with the visceral physical quality of the performances, enhanced by a single panoramic set for all four acts that is stripped of the traditional Spanish stylingKaufmann superbly presents Don José as awkward, socially inept and doomed for disillusionment. Kasarova s Carmen commands attention with a soft and sensual exterior that hides her ruthless and sinister heart in plain viewFranz-Welser-Möst conducted Bizet s score with chiselled detail in his final assignment as Zurich s Generalmusikdirektor before moving to the Vienna State Opera as Chief ConductorTop priceTechnicalMenus: English Picture Format: 16:9 Anamorphic Widescreen Colour Mode: Colour Region Code: 0 (worldwide)DVD Format: NTSC Duration: 166 mins Sound: 1 LPCM Stereo 2 DTS Digital 5.1 SurroundSubtitles: French (sung language), English, German