The Royal Opera is presenting a new production of Georges Bizet’s Carmen – one of the most famous and popular operas ever written – live at Eden Cinemas on Tuesday.

This production by Australian director Barrie Kosky was first seen at Oper Frankfurt in 2016.

Combining passion, sensuality and violence, Carmen proved too shocking for the audience on its 1875 premiere and the opera was initially a critical failure. In spite of this, the popularity of such arias as the Habanera and the Toreador Song helped Carmen become one of the best-loved operas, being performed more than 500 times at the Royal Opera House alone.

The story charts the troubled relationship between the naive young soldier Don José and the fiercely independent gypsy girl Carmen, who when poisoned by jealousy, reaches a tragic conclusion.

Kosky’s far-from-traditional staging gives this timeless story of passion and revenge a fresh perspective. This production draws on the theatre styles and conventions of opéra comique, operetta, revue and vaudeville that inspired Bizet when creating the work. It also incorporates music written by Bizet in the original score, which was then not included at the premiere and has not been heard since.

Jakub Hruša conducts an international cast of singers including Russian mezzo-soprano Anna Goryachova as Carmen and Italian tenor Francesco Meli as Don José.

Carmen will be screened on Tuesday, March 6, at the Eden Cinemas in St Julian’s at 7.45pm. An encore screening will be held on Sunday, March 11, at 3pm. The next opera production in the 2017/2018 ROH Live Cinema Season is Verdi’s Macbeth on April 4. For tickets, visit the Eden Cinemas Box Office or www.edencinemas.com.mt.