Carmen, Fate on Stage

In the golden twilight of La Scala, desire ignites and destiny unfolds. Carmen returns to the stage in a new production that strips Georges Bizet’s celebrated masterpiece of its exoticism to reveal its rawest core. On the podium, Myung-Whun Chung - soon to be the theatre’s Music Director - marks his eleventh operatic title at La Scala, building on a long-standing affinity with French repertoire and over 140 concerts conducted in Milan and on international tours. Directed by Damiano Michieletto, with sets by Paolo Fantin, the production abandons folklore in favor of a stark, almost suspended space, where the protagonists move inexorably toward their fate. The story of Carmen and Don José emerges in its full tragic tension, shaped by desire, freedom, and obsession. Co-produced with the Royal Opera House in London and the Teatro Real in Madrid, this staging enters an international dialogue that reinterprets an iconic work. More than a revival, it is a direct encounter with one of opera’s most magnetic and untamed heroines.