As the weather turns cold, a sexy, visceral production from Syracuse Opera is coming to heat things up.

The company opens their main stage season on Oct. 11 with “The Tragedy of Carmen,” an adaptation by Peter Brook, performed in French with English subtitles, of Georges Bizet’s classic “Carmen.” The adaptation strips the opera down to its most essential characters and themes, creating an invigorating, intimate theatergoing experience. The production will be presented at the 463-seat Carrier Theater, a relatively small venue for opera.

Baritone Wes Mason will play the role of Escamillo, a fearless bullfighter. He compared acting in the small theater to acting for movies.

“The audience is right in your lap,” Mason said. “It’s much more like film acting. You’re not coming in with your arms swinging. You’re doing more with the tilt of your head or turning a glass in your hand.”

Instrumental accompaniment for the show will be similarly small and personal. A chamber ensemble of 15 musicians will support the vocalists.

Douglas Kinney Frost, producer and artistic director for Syracuse Opera, praised the arrangement and said it could make the performance more interesting.

“You have a veiled opportunity for color that’s actually much more dynamic than a full orchestra,” Frost said.

The season’s instrumental musicians will come from the ranks of Symphoria, an orchestra that recently formed to fill the void created after the demise of the Syracuse Symphony Orchestra in 2011.

Beyond “The Tragedy of Carmen,” Syracuse Opera has even more excitement in store this season that will bring international opera stars to Central New York. Another fiery piece entitled “Maria de Buenos Aires” comes to the Carrier Theater in January. Composer Astor Piazzolla uses Argentinean tango music to tell the story of a prostitute, Maria, as she searches for love.

“The music is rhythmic, energetic and really tuneful,” Frost said. “It’s a look into another culture and other sound.”

To finish off the season, a one-night-only staged concert performance of George Gershwin’s “Porgy and Bess” will be presented at the Crouse Hinds Theater. The opera’s jazz-infused melodies chronicle life in Catfish Row, a fictional African-American community from the 1920s.

The season was chosen with the hopes of being exciting for all kinds of people in the community — longtime opera fans and newcomers alike. Frost also spoke to the dynamic nature of today’s young audiences whose tastes are much more diverse than previous generations’. With a limited number of student tickets available on a first-come, first-served basis for only $10, Syracuse Opera strives to make its performances accessible, and provides an opportunity for a new kind of weekend adventure.

Contact Ian: [email protected] 

Published on October 10, 2013 at 1:13 am

Contact Ian: [email protected]