Carmen GEORGES BIZET Look-In Guide
Washington National Opera is thrilled to welcome you and your students to the Opera Look-In: Carmen. The performance will be an exciting experience and provoke great discussions in and outside the classroom. The teacher and student guides are designed to provide general background and cultural information on Carmen and to help bring the opera into context. Both guides are divided into music and cultural topic areas with prompting questions to start the conversation.
Morality Issues
The Role of Dishonor and its Effect on the Community Dishonor affects each community differently. For Carmen, simply being a Gypsy was seen as being anti-Christian and therefore immoral. In 19th century Europe, people were expected to conduct themselves with dignity and make decisions based on logic, reason, and ethics. Carmen, on the other hand acted, on instincts. Women in the 19th century were expected to be submissive, reserved, polite, and proper. Carmen was provocative, free-spirited, alluring, and rebellious. By striving to be free and being part of the Gypsy culture, Carmen was seen as a poor example of what a woman should really be.
Questions to consider about Carmen
• How did Carmen’s desire for freedom affect her moral decisions?
• Was Carmen correct to value freedom above everything?
• Are Carmen’s ideas of freedom dangerous and are they different from contemporary ideals of freedom?
• If Carmen was to drop by for a visit today, do you think she would be welcomed or do you think people would still be cautious around her?
Questions to consider about Don José
• Are Don José’s impulsive actions justified?
• What is the importance of thinking before you act?
• If your students could talk with Don José, what advice should they share with him?
Role of Prophesies: How Carmen Saw Her Death
While many people fear death, Carmen accepted her fate. She so strongly believed in card readings that she felt her fate was sealed as soon as her fortune was told. She could not accept Don José’s possessiveness, declaring before she dies, “I was born free and free I shall die!” While she felt her death was predetermined, she also felt she was dying for freedom.
Educator's Guide to the Opera Look-InAstrology
Astrology can be found in many different cultures around the world; each society’s astrological beliefs reflect its own cultural values.
• Western astrology is based around 12 zodiac signs that are named after significant constellations (not all based on animals). These are Capricorn, Aquarius, Pisces, Aires, Taurus, Gemini, Cancer, Leo, Virgo, Libra, Scorpio, and Sagittarius. One can find their sign based on one’s birthday. Zodiac signs based on planets are another example of predicting future outcomes.
• Vedic, or Indian astrology is a system of seeing likely events in the future based on the positions of the stars and planets at any given time. Vedic astrology is not meant to be fatalistic; rather, it is used to see what is likely to happen if someone does not choose to change the circumstances. The practice of reading the stars is detailed in ancient Sanskrit scriptures called The Vedas, which were documented by enlightened seers, or wisemen in ancient times. The practice of reading the future is called Jyotisha in Sanskrit, which means “the eye of nature.”
• Chinese astrology is based on a 12 – year cycle in which each year is named after an animal. The animal of the year in which the person is born describes their traits, temperament, talents, and future successes and failures. There are also animals assigned to each month in the Chinese year which describe a person’s characteristics even more closely.
How to Discuss Prophesies With Your Students
Carmen’s belief in prophecies and card readings is an integral part of this opera. Though prophecies and tarot cards are not specifically associated with any religion, they are sometimes thought of as a “dark art.” In Carmen’s case, she believed in the cards so strongly that they were essentially her way of expressing herself spiritually. When discussing prophesies and tarot card readings with your students, you can approach the subject from a historical perspective. The numerous interpretations on how to read tarot cards are often based on personal or cultural preferences. The imagery on the picture cards exhibits the different symbols of the astrological concepts and can be appreciated from an artistic perspective.
Persecution of Rom Culture
For centuries, Eastern and Western European countries have been influenced by the Gypsy/Rom culture through music, dance, and other Rom art forms. In Spain, as in other countries, they are often ostracized and face discrimination.
Long before the systemic persecution and execution of the Rom people in Nazi Germany, discriminatory legislation was implemented across the continent against Gypsies. In 1926, a Bavarian law required registration of all Rom people and prohibited the long-established lifestyle of camping in bands. The law also required proof of regular employment or there was the risk of being sent to a labor camp for two years. By 1929, the law was nationalized throughout Germany. When Hitler came to power in 1933, growing anti-Gypsy sentiment supported new prejudicial laws. The 1935 Nuremberg racial laws did not explicitly mention Gypsies, but they were soon included with Jews and “Negros” as minorities with “alien blood” and were prohibited from marrying non-Gypsies. Gypsies were soon targeted for racial scientific testing, and by decree in December 1938, were deported to concentration camps at Buchenwald, Dachau, Sachsenhausen, and Lichtenburg. Gypsies, along with Jews, were forced to labor in concentration camps where they were required to wear black triangle patches for identification.
How To Use The Commentary On CD
From reading the synopsis of Carmen you will know the story of Bizet’s opera. With the Commentary on CD we have provided, you can share with your students the wonderful music of the opera. To assist you, the CD is narrated by musicologist, Saul Lilienstein. Mr. Lilienstein offers a brief explanation of what is happening during each selection as well as some guided listening points to assist in your preparation for the Opera Look-In: Carmen
Specific tracks that will be helpful in your preparation are listed below. You and your students will be hearing music from the following tracks at the Opera Look-In performance. The appropriate track number and timings are listed below:
Track 1 – Introduction and Overture (3:19)
Track 2 – Overture continued (1:56)
Track 3 – Act One: Habanera “the fate motif” (Carmen meets Don José) (2:30)
Track 9 – Seguidilla (2:13)
Track 14 – Act Two: Escamillo’s entrance Toreador's song (2:43)
Track 14 – Flower Song and finale (8:27)
Track 19 – The Card Trio (4:21)
Track 25 – The Final Confrontation (7:40)
Additional Web Research Information
There are numerous helpful resources available online to assist you and your students in learning more about Carmen and Spanish culture. Below are a few links that your students can explore in addition to the student guide for more in depth research.
Georges Bizet and Carmen Research
http://www.metoperafamily.org/metopera/history/stories/synopsis.aspx?id=117
http://www.columbia.edu/itc/music/NYCO/carmen/gypsies.html
http://www.musicwithease.com/bizet-carmen-history.html
http://w3.rz-berlin.mpg.de/cmp/bizet.html
http://www.classiccat.net/bizet_g/biography.htm
http://www.bach-cantatas.com/Lib/Bizet-Georges.htm
http://classicalmusic.about.com/od/opera/qt/carmensynopsis.htm
http://opera.stanford.edu/Bizet/Carmen/main.html
http://www.naxos.com/education/opera_libretti.asp?pn=&char=ALL&composer=Bizet&opera=Carmen&libretto_file=00_ Synopsis.htm
Flamenco and Spanish Culture
http://www.andalucia.com/flamenco/
http://www.timenet.org/detail.html
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Flamenco
http://www.spain-info.com/Culture/bullfighting.htm
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bullfighting
Rom/Gypsy Culture Information
http://www.smithsonianeducation.org/migrations/gyp/gypstart.html
http://www.ushmm.org/wlc/article.php?ModuleId=10005219
Tarot Cards
http://www.allabouttheoccult.org/tarot-cards.htm (tarot cards)
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tarot
http://www.vedicastrology.org/
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i-Education Holdings
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Founded in 1956, Washington National Opera is recognized today as one of the leading opera companies in the United States. Under the leadership of General Director Plácido Domingo, Washington National Opera continues to build on its rich history by offering productions of consistently high artistic standards and balancing popular grand opera with new or less frequently performed works.
As part of the Center for Education and Training at Washington National Opera, Education and Community Programs provides a wide array of programs to serve a diverse local and national audience of all ages. Our school-based programs offer students the opportunity to experience opera first hand -through in-depth, yearlong school partnerships, the acclaimed Opera Look-In, the District of Columbia Public Schools Partnership, and the Kids Create Opera Partners (for elementary schools), and the Student Dress Rehearsal (for high schools) programs. Opera novices and aficionados alike have the opportunity to learn about the season through the Opera Insights series, presented on the Kennedy Center Millennium Stage. All Insights are free, open to the public, and archived on the Kennedy Center website. Outreach to the greater Washington D.C. community is achieved through our numerous public Library Program, the Family Look-In, and the Girl Scout Program
For more information on the programs offered by Washington National Opera, please visit our website at www.dc-opera.org. or contact Education and Community Programs at 202.448.3465 or education@ dc-opera.org
Some students at today’s event are participating in the Arts for Every Student Program, an initiative of the DC Arts and Humanities Education Collaborative.
CREDITS
Lead Writer and Editor
Stephanie M. Wright, Assistant Director of Education and Community Programs
Additional Authors:
Christiane DeVries, Education and Community Programs Associate
Carol Dory, Education Intern
Dhivya Krishnan, Education Intern
Paulena Papagiannis, Education Intern
Editors:
Michelle Krisel, Director for the Center for Education and Training
Catherine Zadoretzky, Publications Editor
Graphic Design:
Ceci Dadisman
CeciCreative
General Director Placido Domingo