For "Operanation 6: Habanera," held Friday at the Four Seasons Centre for the Performing Arts, the Canadian Opera Company paid tribute to Carmen with an evening full of entertainment and food inspired by the famous opera. “We like to try, when possible, to connect our theme to the operas that we’re doing,” said Sarah Jarvis, the company's special events manager. “Carmen is the most identifiable character in the history of opera so it was a no-brainer for us, and of course with her character comes all of the other amazing elements of the opera that we can tie into—the Spanish location, the food and drinks, and the music."
Jarvis worked with a volunteer committee co-chaired by Ingrid Chao, Fayaz Dossa, and Rosemarie Umetsu to plan the event—which drew 120 guests to a V.I.P. dinner held at 7 p.m., and 1,000 attendees for the Latin-themed party that began at 9 p.m. “I think the whole theme is looking at Carmen from a different perspective," Jarvis said. "It gives people a taste of the story of the opera."
Jarvis played up various elements from Carmen—set in Seville, Spain—throughout the event. She called on Rose Reisman Catering to prepare a paella bar and a selection of Spanish-inspired tapas for guests and enlisted actors with the improv troupe the National Theatre of the World to portray an interpretation of the opera's famous love story.
A tarot card reader, inspired by a scene in the opera's second act, entertained guests, and Latin dancers from City Dance Corps performed flamenco and salsa routines. The highlight of the evening's entertainment included a rendition of Carmen's "Habanera" by mezzo soprano Lauren Segal, who was accompanied by the TorQ Percussion Quartet. "We wanted to be able to offer an operatic experience to the guests but it's always a challenge to do that in a cocktail setting," Jarvis said. "We introduced a percussion element with TorQ, to supply the pulse to the aria."
The event, intended to introduce young patrons to the opera, was moved from its regular fall date to accommodate the company's 60th anniversary event, held in November. For the first time this year, all Operanation attendees had the opportunity to receive a 50 per cent discount on a ticket to a future performance.
