Music

REVIEW: Thank You for Smoking: Opera Philadelphia’s Carmen (for Parterre Box)

How do you like your Carmen? The role – and Bizet’s opera – contain multitudes.

The vocal standards are high, and the pleasure of discovering new talent always exhilarating.

Without its companion pieced, Trouble in Tahiti, this difficult late work feels like half of an opera.

A terrific evening of music and theater, and a thrilling affirmation of a magnificent work.

But why isn’t there more light and clarity in this moody but muddy work about illuminated manuscripts?

This chamber-sized production offers some large-scale musical pleasures.

Conductor Cristian Macelaru’s middle-of-the-road approach has glorious moments, but doesn’t quite cohere dramatically.

Picks for things to see and hear from now through February, including EgoPo’s Lydie Breeze.

Despite exquisite moments, the Curtis production feels drained of emotional energy.

David Hertzberg’s opera is dramatically pretentious, musically gorgeous, and very much An Event.