Viva La Carmen

Since its inception, Georges Bizet’s notorious opera has been transformed from an opera to Beyoncé’s hip-hopera, and now Miami theatergoers can see the U.S. premiere of the Antonio Gades Company’s rendition of Carmen. This Latin-flavored production is based on the Oscar-winning film and pulls music from the original opera as well as the zarzuela El Gato Montes. In this rendition, dance company director Gades is hard at work piecing together the staging for the opera, and when he finds the perfect woman to play the leading role, he is pulled into a whirlwind of obsession for the dancing beauty. With an intoxicating mixture of elaborate costumes, a mirror-defined set, seductive music, and passionate dancing, this very production is what launched the Antonio Gades Company to international renown and won the Spanish dance troupe an Oscar and the award for best artistic contribution at the Cannes Film Festival. Carmen kicks off the Arsht Center’s three-day Flamenco Festival, so for a night of seductive music and authentic flamenco, order your tickets.
Fri., Feb. 13, 8 p.m., 2009