Theater Review: Utah Opera's "Carmen"
By Dan Nailen

Regular readers know that my patience for musical theater is slim, almost nonexistent.

For some reason, though, opera doesn't have the same negative connotations for me. Maybe it's because I'm a relative newbie to the genre, having only seen maybe five operas in my life. Maybe it's the foreign languages that draw me in (the one opera I actually hated was the only one I've seen sung in English). Maybe it's the lush musical orchestrations that help me get into it.

Whatever the reason—and it's probably a combination of them all—opera is okay for this Everyman. And Utah Opera's current production of Carmen might be the one I've enjoyed the most in the past three years of expanding my theater-going horizons.

Georges Bizet's Carmen is massively popular, and Monday night's show packed Capitol Theatre—a clear indication that people respond to the story of the man-eating gypsy and the sad sacks that stumble over themselves trying to please her, particularly one Don Jose, who sees his life essentially ruined by his obsession with her.

The audience also must respond to the music; I'll gladly admit that my first thought when the symphony started playing the show's prelude was, "Hey, so that's where the music from The Bad New Bears comes from!"

A few aspects of Utah Opera's production instantly appealed to me. The children's chorus (from Salt Lake City's Madeleine Choir School) was excellent, and unlike many plays I've seen where the children on stage seem like mere props or a distraction from the main action, the chorus was integral to setting the scene. Carmen also has enough action to keep the story moving at a good clip; the length of most operas is definitely a drawback for this ADD-afflicted Gen-Xer, so a three-hour running time can be daunting. The acts in Carmen move along crisply, and I was glad for it.

The biggest attraction, though, is Carmen herself, as played by Leann Sandel-Pantaleo in her Utah Opera debut. Consider me just another guy bewitched by the sexy Spanish lass that Sandel-Pantaleo inhabits in a performance that not only impresses thanks to her vocal strength, but because of her inherent charisma.

When Sandel-Pantaleo's Carmen first took the stage, I was already entranced by the music and massive cast sharing the space of the typically excellent set design. But Carmen instantly took all my focus, and all I could think was, "She is a rock star!" It takes a special something to stand out from a cast full of amazing, powerful voices, but Sandel-Pantaleo's Carmen does it with ease.

Watching her toy with Don Jose or the toreador Escamillo is a joy. But this is opera, after all, so some tragedy is bound to occur, and does. But not before the audience has experienced a sure-footed night of enchanting entertainment.