'Carmen'' is the comic opera by G. Bizet (1838-1875) in 4 acts. Libretto by H. Meilhac and L. Halevy after P. Merimee's novel of the same name. The premiere took place at the Opera Comique in Paris. However, the ''Carmen's'' music occurred to be so innovatory, while the narration - so democratic one, that the opera was accepted hostilely by reactionary critics.
Originally the ''Carmen'' was conceived by Bizet as the musical action with just recited dialogues (oral speech) - hence the genre ''comic opera'' thus defined by Bizet himself. After the composer's death his friend E. Guiraud made the new version of the score, inserting musical recitatives instead of orally pronounced phrases. The Viennese premiere on October 23, 1875, did really strike all hits. This exact version has been staged up to nowadays. The Russian premiere dates February 16, 1878, having been realized by the Italian company in St. Petersburg.
The opera ''Carmen'' by G. Bizet has been enjoying popularity since that time all over the world, winning hearts and acquiring new admirers by its captivating music as if confirming once more those oracular words belonging to P. I. Tchaikovsky from his letter to N. von Mekk: ''...This is a true masterpiece, i. e. the creation reflecting the whole epoch's strivings in full capacity... I am sure the ''Carmen'' shall hit all the opera marks in the future ten years...''