JOSÉ CURA, "CARMEN" -- Interview at the George Enescu Festival in Bucharest, Romania in 2007
JOSÉ CURA, "CARMEN" -- GEORGE ENESCU FESTIVAL IN 2007
In September 2007, the 2007/2008 schedule, filled with a number of enticing performances, began with a stunning Carmen at the George Enescu Festival in Bucharest, Romania.
Venue: Opera Națională București , Bucharest, Romania.
Date: 8th, September, 2007
A NEW TRIUMPH FOR JOSÉ CURA!
What was there to see in the first show hosted by the Bucharest National Opera in this edition of the ‘George Enesco’ Festival? José Cura himself, a handsome, temperamental, sensitive singer the kind we hadn't seen on our stages for a very long time a high-class and intelligent artist, a man who probably creates a magnetic field around him wherever he goes, and who naturally attracts appraisal due to his celebrity. A new triumph for José Cura! --- Radio Romania Muzical
THE MOST POWERFUL DON JOSÉ
The second essential point in the work comes at the end of Act III when Don José’s love turns to hate. Tenor José Cura was, at that moment, the most powerful Don José that I have ever seen or heard. Cura offered a solid Don José, without internal cracks, who manages to be outwardly humble and lyrical while at the same time indestructibly arrogant. What a rare thing! I cheered enthusiastically and cried ‘bravo!’ with all my heart. Cura’s great quality is not his voice, though without a doubt he sings very well; his vocal cords have been kissed by God. And yet, it is due to the temperament of this huge dramatic tenor, his acting that he invests in the character and not necessarily in the music. With keen intelligence, Cura knows how to use his voice in a special way. His interpretative solutions are unique, surprising. Where almost all other tenors use piano, he forces one or two notes, makes a split second stop and then offers a tense piano. Every time it works. He convinces. Cura is that kind of tenor, quite rare, who excels in those moments when the character lives an emotional earthquake, must make major decisions, or keenly feel the feelings. For me, the scene at the end of Act III was fantastic. From that moment, when Don José is rejected by Carmen, he becomes her most dangerous enemy. And Cura showed us this transformation with the same clarity as teachers show students how bodies are dissected.--- Cotidianul
CURA AMAZED AUDIENCE WITH MACHISMO, INTENSITY, & INTERPRETATION
José Cura amazed the audience with his machismo, intensity, and interpretation. But if many were expecting to see a romantic Carmen, the Gala performance on Sunday must have taken them by surprise. Cura’s vision turned Bizet’s opera into a passionate and exciting performance, putting particular emphasis on the character of Don José. Cura’s Don José is an arrogant man but one in accordance with the time, whose machismo attitude could not tolerate the behavior of a free and powerful Carmen. The murder at the end of the opera is not an act of jealousy but the natural act of strong man in the face of humiliation. Two scenes in particular took away the audience’s breath: the third act, when Don José is called home by Micaela for his ailing mother—the violence Cura calls up could be read on [Carmen’s] face—and the final scene, when the intensity of Cura’s interpretation erased any trace of theatricality, as if he had brought the boiling blood and nerves of Don José to the stage. --- Cotidianul
