It was not staged again at the Opéra Comique until 1883. In one of the most thrilling passages in this film, two years before she made her indelible complete recording of 'Carmen' - an opera she never appeared in onstage - Callas sings Carmen's. In October 1875 it was produced in Vienna, to critical and popular success, which began its path to worldwide popularity. Bizet died of a heart attack, aged 36, on 3 June 1875, never knowing how popular Carmen would become.

Near the end of this run, the theatre was giving tickets away in order to stimulate attendance. It was almost withdrawn after its fourth or fifth performance, and although this was avoided, ultimately having 48 performances in its first run, it did little to bolster sagging receipts at the Opéra-Comique.

The opera premiered at the Opéra-Comique of Paris on 3 March 1875, but its opening run was denounced by the majority of critics. Mérimée had read the poem in Russian by 1840 and translated it into French in 1852. The libretto is by Henri Meilhac and Ludovic Halévy, based on the novella of the same title by Prosper Mérimée, first published in 1845, itself possibly influenced by the narrative poem The Gypsies (1824) by Alexander Pushkin. Double Subtitles (French and English) available: activate the 'English' subtitle track on the video Lyrics and translation below (click 'show more') Subscrib. Carmen is a French opéra comique by Georges Bizet.

Carmen opera habanera maria callas