The National Dance Company of Spain’s 2024 U.S. Tour in Detroit

Award-winning choreographer Johan Inger’s “Carmen,” originally created for the Compañía Nacional de Danza, reduces the classic story to its mythical and universal elements of passion and revenge.

Carmen

• Choreographer: Johan Inger.
• Music: Georges Bizet, Rodion Shchedrin, and Marc Alvarez.
• Lead dancers: Alessandro Riga and Kayoko Everhart.
• Artistic Director: Joaquín de Luz.

Spain’s Compañía Nacional de Danza will perform Carmen, in choreographer Johan Inger’s reimagined version of Georges Bizet’s opera. Returning to Prosper Mérimée’s original novel for inspiration, Inger frames the action through the eyes of a child, re-examining the characters through a contemporary prism.

With music by Georges Bizet, arrangements by Rodion Shchedrin, and additional original music by Marc Álvarez, Inger’s Carmen reduces the classic story to its mythical and universal elements of passion and revenge.

There is a certain mystery within this character. It could be any kid, it could be Don José when he was a boy, it could be a young Michaela or Carmen and José’s unborn child. It could even be ourselves, with our very first goodness wounded due to a violent experience that, though brief, has had a negative impact in our lives and our ability to interact with others forever.

—Johan Inger