March 17 — Provocate Presents … “Carmen” Multiculturally
Indianapolis Opera Ensemble will present excerpts from Bizet’s opera “Carmen.” Clips from the film “U-Carmen,” a South African adaptation of the opera, will be shown as well.
When: Monday March 17, time to be announced
Where: place to be announced
“U-Carmen eKhayelitsha” is called one of the greatest opera films ever, but it’s more than that. The film sets Bizet’s timeless opera “Carmen” in a contemporary South African township, and translates the opera from French into Xhosa (South African click language that to unsophisticated American ears sounds like “Star Wars.”) OK, just by itself the fact that “U-Carmen eKhayelitsha” is showing is splendid news. But don’t start celebrating yet, there’s more. The experience of the film will be greatly enhanced if we know more about Bizet’s original opera. And it would be very good to know more about Xhosa, and maybe about what traditional music in that language sounds like. And South Africa, it would sure help to know about what life in the townships is really like. Especially the position of women in South African townships, “Carmen” is about one of the all-time memorable female characters in Western art, Carmen is a dangerous and intriguing mixture of predator and prey, a product of the savage poverty of Europe in 1875. Would poor South Africans today recognize the world of the poor lawbreakers of Europe a century and a half ago?
So here’s what we have at Butler on March 17. The film, plus parts of other film versions of “Carmen.” Singers from Indianapolis Opera performing highlights of the opera (in French). Xhosa folk singers. Leaders from Ambassadors for Children, who have a humanitarian tourist group going to Khayelitsha in June. And, as they say, much much more.
Provocate fans may feel a sense of deja vu about this event. For a sense of why Provocate’s John Clark is psyched about the event, go here.
If you like this event, check out some of Indy’s other Africa events this spring.
January 5th, 2008 at 2:50 pm
[…] March 17 — Carmen Multiculturally. Indianapolis Opera Ensemble will present excerpts from Bizet’s opera “Carmen.” Clips from the film “U-Carmen,” a South African adaptation of the opera, will be shown as well. check it out […]