According to Operabase, Bizet’s Carmen has received over sixteen thousand performances worldwide in the 21st century alone. Recordings (I’m partial to Régine Crespin on Erato, 1975) and videos (a very fine recreation of the original production is on YouTube here) abound. Regardless, for the talented performers of Gulfshore Opera Company and the packed house (∼1,400 seats) at Hayes Hall in Naples, FL on 7 December 2025, demonstrated why Carmen remains a repertory mainstay and perennial favorite.

Obviously, Carmen demands a great Carmen, and Gulfshore Opera has found a winner with the mezzo-soprano Lisa Marie Rogali. She inhabited the role with a vibrant physicality combined with a strong, warm voice at both the top and bottom of the range. She communicated the complexities of Carmen’s character—her scheming, sometimes joyful, occasionally violent, and, yes, sensual personality—with a deft mixture of voice, gesture, and movement, making it believable that Don José could literally lose his mind over her.

The librettists Meilhac and Halévy did not give the role of Micaëla much to do other than be the “good girl” to Carmen’s “bad girl.” Bizet, however, gave her some glorious music to sing, and soprano Avery Boettcher made the most of it. She effortlessly sent her voice soaring to the back of the house in the Act III aria “Je dis que rien ne m’épouvante,” which brought the loudest ovation of the evening. Her duet with tenor Brendan Boyle as José in Act I was also a highlight—their powerful and silky voices blended beautifully. Boyle made a convincing José, his voice expressing the character’s descent and loss of control. Tyler Putnam, as the dashing Escamillo, sounded slightly strained at the top at the beginning of the Toreador Song, but quickly settled in to deliver an excellent performance.

Conductor Jorge Parodi drew a balanced, measured performance from the musicians of the Naples Philharmonic, one of the best regional orchestras in the country. He supported and did not overwhelm the singers while navigating a score that contains some of opera’s all-time greatest hits. Despite its familiarity from dozens of movies, television shows, and cartoons, the music sounded fresh and vital. Josh Shaw’s direction, utilizing traditional sets and costumes, was straightforward and did not distract from the compelling music drama on the stage.

Naples is a wealthy community in southwest Florida that strongly supports the arts. The Hayes Theater at the Artis—Naples complex is sumptuous and acoustically splendid. The audience on Sunday night defined the term well-heeled. Though most were older, there was a generous smattering of young people in attendance. All were there to enjoy this enduring classic performed by the gifted singers of Gulfshore Opera, some of whom are destined for significant careers. So, once more to the question, “Carmen, again?” the answer in Naples is, “Yes!”