Milwaukee Ballet Presents Season Finale "Carmen"

Milwaukee Ballet will stage the deadly love triangle of Carmen from May 16-18 at The Pabst Theater. Highlighting the tantalizing sexuality and fierce independence of its titular femme fatale, this production will mark the first performance of this popular story by Milwaukee Ballet since 2001.

“There’s a reason Carmen has captured imaginations for decades,” says Artistic Director Michael Pink. “The raw emotions of love, jealousy, and obsession resonate with audiences in foundational yet complex ways, so every production brings something new to the table.”

This particular adaptation is choreographed by Mark Godden, who has enjoyed a long history at Milwaukee Ballet. Starting in 2001, he regularly returns and creates original and adapted works such as Angels in the Architecture and The Magic Flute. His Carmen premiered on Mexico’s Ballet de Jalisco in 2018, and Milwaukee Ballet will perform it for the first time in the United States. The iconic score by Rodion Shchedrin, inspired by Georges Bizet’s opera, will be enjoyed alongside original lighting and projection work by local designer Jason Fassl.

The program will include a new work choreographed by Tsai Hsi Hung, winner of Milwaukee Ballet’s 2024 Genesis International Choreographic Competition. Critics hailed Hung’s original work The living quality as “wholly unexpected…[with] choreography that roars.” Her new work promises to be equally unexpected.

Longtime Leading Artist Barry Molina has announced his retirement at the end of this season. Molina has been with the Company since 2011 and is best known for the roles of Peter in Peter Pan, Renfield in Dracula, and Fritz in The Nutcracker. He will dance in both Carmen and Hung’s world premiere, having a featured role in the latter.

“Barry has always impressed me with his athleticism and thoughtful approach to his craft,” says Pink. “He exemplifies the vision and mission of our company. We wish him the very best in his next endeavors.”

Milwaukee Ballet will collaborate with Florentine Opera on several Carmen-themed collaborations, as both companies are preparing to present the story this spring. Along with several digital content pieces, the organizations will host an exclusive subscriber event featuring excerpts from both productions followed by a Q&A with Artists and Artistic Leadership.

Milwaukee Ballet has also resurrected the popular “Pints Before Pointe” event. Led by the company’s newly established Emerging Leaders Council, this event will invite young professionals from throughout the city to enjoy a preshow panel with the choreographers before attending opening night of Carmen.

Carmen is sure to end Milwaukee Ballet’s 2024/25 Season Love & Lust with flare, leaving audiences hungry for the season to come.