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Nicholas de Jongh's rating
A sizzling scarlet woman
By
Nicholas de Jongh
1 Aug 2007
Jude Kelly, the South Bank Centre's new artistic director, has taken a big, brave leap of daring and launched the born-again Festival Hall with what looks like opera for the people.
Unfortunately, her production of Oscar Hammerstein's Carmen Jones - the 1940s all-black makeover of George Bizet's Carmen, with a heroine taking the sexual high-road to self-destruction - never musters the erotic excitement of the 19th-century original.
Little sexual electricity or tension flares between Tsakane Valentine Maswanganyi's sensational-looking Carmen and her smitten admirer, Andrew Clarke's stolid Joe, who loses his head, heart and sexual parts to her. The couple boast powerful, versatile voices - Clarke reaching a fine, despairing falsetto - but they never seem harrowed or driven by desire and overwhelming emotion. It was Sherry Boone's Cindy Lou, in her song My Joe, a lament for the loss of her man, who won cheers of approval last night for communicating an intensity of feeling that was otherwise too often absent.
Hammerstein's version whisks the action away from Spain to America's Deep South. Bizet's gipsy girl, here transformed by Miss Maswanganyi into Carmen Jones, becomes a parachute maker while Clarke's Joe is poised for pilot training. The toreador Escamillo, Carmen's prized object of desire, becomes prize fighter Husky Miller, whom the muscular Rodney Clarke plays with all the right nonchalant, swaggering vigour. His Stan' Up' An' Fight is the one number in the first half that pulsates with dynamism.
The music remains intact in Hammerstein's remoulding, but the action loses its driving tension and the London Philharmonic or Philharmonia, who will alternate through the run, are riskily placed centre stage and in clear view of the audience rather than below the eye-line. The volume of gloriously impassioned sound produced by the fine orchestra keeps drowning out the performers, whether they sing or speak. Supertitles are needed, since so many words and songs are lost or under-projected. There is not even a synopsis in the programme for newcomers to the opera. Miss Kelly claims to have set her production in Latin America, but there is scant sense of American soldiers being over there to save another country in the supposed cause of democracy. Besides, by the second half the location is evidently Chicago.
Michael Vale's set, with its balustrades, wooden scaffolding and parked car, could be almost anywhere. The performers and ensemble are confined and restricted in two narrow playing areas - one behind the orchestra, one in front. There is little space for Rafael Bonachela's over-sedate choreography. Attention keeps being diverted from one group of drinking, chatting soldiers to another.
The startling Miss Maswanganyi as Carmen looks every provoking, insinuating inch of her, the ideal fatal-attraction girl. Wafer-thin but sinuous, hair standing dramatically almost on end, gold earrings the size of peaches, this haughty, self-possessed Carmen does not so much walk on her fabulous legs as glide, prowl and strut about town like some gaudy bird of prey in search of its victim.
Miss Maswanganyi's red dress, slashed to the groin one side and then sloping down towards the illusion of respectability on the other, helps make her simmer with sex appeal. In the final encounter, when Joe stabs Carmen, Miss Maswanganyi is a revelation. She betrays a passive fatalism as if finding fulfilment in violent death.
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Reader views (10)
Was looking forward to the performance at the RFH but was left disappointed. A combination of over- (and under-) acting, poor direction and bad stage management left me feeling flat. I understand the environment in which Carmen was set allows for informality; this being displayed by the odd way in which the show started and the non-existent dress code of the London Philharmonic Orchestra. With such a wonderful script and score, more use could have been made of the lighting. Was not expecting a complete lack of control where the actors were concerned; was painful to watch their positioning on stage and I was sure to develop a headache if I had to watch one more person run, seemingly aimlessly, from one end of the stage to the other!
Not convinced Ms Maswanganyi researched the role of Carmen; there was no change in her tone of voice, few appropriate responses to any situation in any particular scene and hardly any demonstrations of emotion. She simply strutted around the stage in the same manner for every scene the entire show. A better singer than actor and I’ve forgiven the poor American accent.
The show stopping moments were when Brenda Edwards performed an uplifting rendition of ‘Beat Out Dat Rhythm on a Drum’ and, of course, Sherry Boone’s ‘My Joe’ which was exemplary and was one of the rare times I genuinely felt the character’s pain and despair.
Am glad I went to see it but appeared thrown together. Jude Kelly did a group of talented performers a great disservice.
- Melissa Duke, London, 22/08/2007 01:35
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I have seen the show twice now, and came to the same conclusions from both performances. I struggled really badly with trying to work out who was speaking through most of the dialogue but the singing was superb. Rhythm on the drum I wished was twice as long, it was amazing, but the real show stopper was undoubtedly Sherry Boone with My Joe - she absolutely blew the roof off - what a voice, shame on them not making this available on CD, I am sure it would be a sell out just for that one track alone!
I agree with previous comments about the orchestra pit, they looked like they had wandered off the street, even if they had been wearing the same colour it would have looked a bit more impressive. Apart from that thoroughly enjoyable show.
- Kathleen Riddell, Edgware England, 21/08/2007 14:27
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I had high hopes for this yet left rather cold. The singers and dancers are great, Carmen looks every inch the cold, sexy tease, however I felt the show just didn’t quite work. Neither myself or my boyfriend experienced even a twinge of the emotional upset or passionate intent of the last scene.
The dancing was excellent but the actual staging ruins the show-they need more space and the enthusiastic musicians drown the singers out!
We couldn't hear the actors most of the time meaning every word was lost-I love the music but it is a shame we couldn’t have heard the lyrics too. I also felt that the leads whilst great on their own with stunning voices had little chemistry as a couple. Usually Carmen brings me to tears and sends shivers up my spine and I so wanted this production to but a combination of the lousy acoustics, fire alarm going off mid way through the show and lack of chemistry put paid to this.
I thought the numbers where Carmen was just allowed to be a musical were far better- Brenda was great! and occasionally there were touches of what might have been-little flickers of brilliance-such as the gentle love song but these were fleeting and gave way to a less than stunning production.
There was so much talent on that stage but you couldn’t help feel it was wasted and you couldn’t quite put your finger on it. Carmen is worth seeing just don’t expect it to arouse your senses or blow your brains-at the end of the day-we are still English don’t you know
- Kitty, London, 15/08/2007 03:48
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If you can see past the awful accents, muffled dialog and generally poor acoustic (what have they done to the Royal Festival Hall?), then this is well worth seeing. Tsakane Valentine Maswanganyi looks wonderful as a sexy, dare I say dirty, Carmen Jones, but as the other reviews say, Sherry Boone, Brenda Edwards and Rodney Clarke steal the show.
- Stephen Ferguson, London, UK, 15/08/2007 02:48
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Having seen and loved the original film version of "Carmen Jones" many moons ago, I was looking forward to seeing this staged production, but I have to say that it surpassed all my high expectations! Whilst the stage area is not an ideal space, I was carried away with the verve and energy of all the performers. The highlight was Sherry Boone's aria "My Joe" in Act II.
I was not the only one who needed several tissues to mop-up the generated emotions on hearing and seeing this heart-rending performance. Spectacular!
- Barbara Toye, London, UK, 15/08/2007 02:48
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Having been a follower of Tsakane within the talented Amici, I am already a great fan of her beautifully powerful voice. I was not at all disapointed by seeing her in Carmen for the first time this Sunday afternoon. I enjoyed the whole show, all of the cast were terrific and very talented singers and dancers. I may be, as far as I am aware, the first person to say that I actually liked seeing the orchestra up on stage, and the two albeit narrow areas for the performers made good use of the stage, bearing in mind that most of the scenes are, by their nature 'busy'.
I think this show is a 'break' from the norm and those who complain appear not to be willing to accept this, expecting it to be just another run of the mill musical. I applaude the change and all those who have combined their talents in its' production and performance. I will definitely be making the journey to London see this again.
- Patricia Smith, Isle of Wight England, 15/08/2007 02:48
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We were extremely disappointed with this production. Splitting the stage front and rear of the orchestra really doesn't work. The acting was, shall we say, not good. The essense of Carmen (Jones or not) is passion, this was totally lacking. The only time any energy was displayed was by Brenda Edwards. Very poor.
- Paul Mellors, Doncaster, UK, 15/08/2007 02:48
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Cheap! That sums up, in a word, the appearance of this hopelessly misguided production. Of the cast of forty performers only a dozen or so would appear to be in any kind of 'costume' and the orchestra seem to have strolled in off the South Bank in clothes appropriate for the season thus making the musicians' presence in the centre of the action all the more distracting. How one is supposed to concentrate on our lovers' misguided passion while it is being conducted inches away from the conductor 'going at it' hell for leather sure beat me. The vast performance area and awful lighting created problems too. There were many occasions when I found myself desperately scanning the stages trying to work out who was speaking. One had to feel sorry for the performers having to cope with the complete lack of atmosphere in this aircraft hangar of a space. There were a couple of human steeple-chases as performers charged from one performance area to the other (apparently Bizet didn't provide enough music for the exercise to be carried out decorously). Perhaps, in future, this director would be advised to make a decision as whether they wish to 'stage' a musical or perform it 'in concert'. This horrible hybrid serves nobody well, least of all the performers.
- Peter Searle, London UK, 15/08/2007 02:48
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Having seen the film a couple of times and being familiar with Bizet's fantastic score I had been wanting to see a stage version of this musical for ages. Attended the matinee on Sunday. What a show.
Tsakane Valentine Maswanganyi is perfectly cast in the role of Carmen, sexy, sassy and that red dress!
It's worth seeing if only to experience Sherry Boone's (Cindy Lou) rendition of 'My Joe' and Brenda Edwards (Pearl) belting out 'Beat out Dat Rhythm on a Drum' both show stoppers and both gaining great applause from the audience. The whole cast are terrific singers.
A great show if you love musicals. A great show if you love opera.
An exciting musical experience from the first to last note. Go see it!
- Chris Neale, Ringwood U.K., 15/08/2007 02:48
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As a general lover of musicals I thought that I would see Carmen Jones. We loved it! The score is amazing full marks for the use of the Philharmonic Orchestra on the day we visited. The Clarke brothers who play Carmen's love rivals were excellent. The set was a little strange. But a great production all round.
- Allison Lucas, London, UK, 15/08/2007 02:48
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