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Benjamin Millepied’s first film will be released in theaters on Wednesday June 14. At the age of 46, the dancer and choreographer launches into the cinema with a resolutely modern adaptation of “Carmen”.
In a new modern take on the famous opera, Carmen is Mexican, and tries to enter the United States. Saved by an American soldier, she flees with him, and finds refuge in the dance. “It’s a drama, with music and dancing. It’s not a light-hearted fantasy musical. The idea was to bring the dancing in organically, and not cut those dancing out”explains Benjamin Millepied, the director.
About fifteen adaptations on the big screen
Since Bizet’s work in 1875, Carmen has become the most performed opera in the world. An emblematic character of freedom, adapted to the cinema from the beginning of the 20th century, by Charlie Chaplin. Fifteen adaptations on the big screen followed. Some are rested very faithful to the opera, others transposed into a hip-hop version. However, all retain the original passion, because Carmen is a story that still seduces, 150 years later. For his first film, the star choreographer and dancer has invented a new Carmen, faced with immigration problems and drunk with freedom.