June 22, 2010
Gerhard said he had seen enough pyramids, so he was taken to the Teatro Jose Peon Contreras, Calle 60 x 59 y 57, Centro, for a night on the town. The theater was constructed in 1907 when the Centro still had gorgeous buildings and was restored in 1981.

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The opera "Carmen" had a two week run in Mérida, and was directed, accompanied and performed by professionals who had been trained and served in the music capitals of all the world. People of all ages, dressed in clothing from very dressy to casual, filled the theater. We estimated over 500 were in attendance that night. During the last intermission, we were greeted by the coordinadora of the Clinica 52, our Social Security clinic, with her husband.

As a birthday present to Bro. Richards we invited them to come along, and it was a fun evening for some of us :)


The calls of "Primera llamada," etc. reminded me of the many JSA plays we had seen, but had the additional excitement of being in the 8th row of the center seats for this famous musical production.
Messages and the text of the songs in Spanish were projected on the curtains above the stage. The scenery was a work of art in itself, with the changes made efficiently to contribute to the atmosphere without detracting.


The opening scene

Micaela, the hometown sweetheart, brings a message to José from his mother. The gypsy Carmen steals his affection.


Literature and drama provide the heightening of emotion, tantalizing feelings, viewing of one's actions and motives through the lens of the artist's effort. These were all present in Carmen, and amplified by the music.


Our conversation at the opera and later at home focused on what we had seen of contrasting pure love with selfish lust and seeing the destructive results of actions that come from incorrect principles.

The cast, the children's chorus that provided comic relief, director of the orchestra and the designers and technical support people received applause and of course flowers for those who had the main parts.

Leaving the theater we saw a calesa waiting to take people home and decided that would be the perfect ending. We could imagine people at the turn of the century being driven home through the narrow streets lined with tall, white buildings.

As he left us at the big gate on 72nd street, the driver told us about his horse, the breed that the Spaniards introduced into Yucatán and about his Mayan heritage that had been conquered some 500 years ago.



Carmen, in the cover picture of the booklet we were given with information about the performers, the orchestra and the supporting personnel.
Posters of the costumes and makeup
According to publicity for the event : Carmen is the beautiful Carla Dirlikov, daughter of a Bulgarian father and Mexican mother, and Cultural Envoy of México. She teaches music to poverty-stricken children and orphans.

ass="content">Don José: Rodrigo Garciarroyo.
Escamillo: Jesús Suaste.
To speak of Carmen (written by the French composer Georges Bizet) is to speak of the most well-known opera of all times. It is a story full of passion, filled with songs that have transcended the history of music. Based on the novel Carmen by Prosper Mérimée, it is impossible to believe that the opera was a total flop when it opened in Paris in 1875. Bizet died three months later, never knowing of the huge success of his work.

Carmen is an opera in four acts, set in Sevilla, and tells the tragic love story between Carmen and Corporal Don José Morales and his rival, the bullfighter Escamillo. The first act takes place in a plaza in Sevilla next to a cigar factory. It relates how Carmen, a gypsy who works in the tabacco factory, is apprehended and taken to jail because of a fight. On the way to prison, the guard Don José falls under the spell of the gypsy girl. The second act is in the interior of the tavern of Lilias Pastias. Carmen celebrates with Don José in a festive, dance-filled scene, attended by the bullfighter Escamillo, who also falls in love with her. In the third act, in the mountains, Escamillo appears, searching for Carmen, and finds Don José, who he challenges to a duel. After swearing his love, Don José leaves Carmen. In the fourth and last act, outside the bullfight plaza, Don Jose’s jealousy reaches its limit when he sees his beloved on the arm of the bullfighter, and running after her, he stabs her.

Carmen is a project with more than 12 months of planning, involving more than 200 local people, who make up the chorus, the ballet, and other figures; as well as the presence of the excellent Stage Director Ragnar Conde, visiting from Mexico City. There is also a team of makeup and costume professionals, as well as stagehands and actors. All of these people, creative and talented, are carefully chosen by the Fideicomiso Garante de la Orquesta Sinfónica de Yucatán.