AN EXTRA PERFORMANCE AND A SIMULCAST:
SHE JUST KEEPS ON GIVING
This isn’t the first time LA Opera has opened a season with Carmen, but it is the first time that ticket sales are so great that an extra performance has been added before performances began. The run remains as September 7 through October 1, 2017; the seventh added performance is on September 28, so great seats are available now.
Conducted by Music Director James Conlon and starring company favorite Ana MarÃa MartÃnez, Carmen is directed for the first time in L.A. by Ron Daniels, who directed LA Opera’s 2010 world premiere of Il Postino, with new 
costumes by Denitsa Bliznakova. Gerardo Trotti’s massive and striking sets, which offer breathtaking perspective, will happily be used again.
Brandon Jovanovich, the American tenor with an enticing and rich vocal quality that is rare to behold, will return as Don José on September 20, 23, and October 1; Italian tenor Riccardo Massi makes his company debut in the role on September 9, 14, 17, and 28.
With music by Georges Bizet and libretto by Henri Meilhac and Ludovic Halévy, the “Tale of a Temptress” is one of the most accessible operas ever written; the consistency of memorable arias and musical melodies specific to the location of the story is nearly unparalleled, and that means folks new to opera can’t be alienated in any way.
It’s also astounding that ticket sales are so great given LA Opera’s offering of a free high-definition live video, which will be broadcast on September 23 at 7pm from the Dorothy Chandler Pavilion to large outdoor screens at two locations: Exposition Park and Santa Monica Pier. Although no tickets are required for entrance, guests are encouraged to sign up in advance to get important information like parking and traffic notifications, a digital program and a free gift on-site.
As if Carmen herself wasn’t tempting enough, now you have no excuse to miss this production.
photos by Lynn Lane and Robert Millard
Carmen
LA Opera
Dorothy Chandler Pavilion, 135 North Grand Ave
• Saturday, September 9, 2017, at 7pm
• Thursday, September 14, 2017, at 7:30pm
• Sunday, September 17, 2017, at 2pm
• Wednesday, September 20, 2017, at 7:30pm
• Saturday, September 23, 2017, at 7pm (with live simulcasts)
• NEW: Thursday, September 28, 2017, at 7:30pm
• Sunday, October 1, 2017, at 2pm
for tickets, call 213.972.8001 or visit LA Opera