''Carmen on Ice'' is a 1990
dance film
A dance film (also known as screen dance) is a film in which dance is used to reveal the central themes of the film, whether these themes be connected to narrative or story, states of being, or more experimental and formal concerns. In such films, ...
with a
choreography for
figure skaters made in
Germany
Germany,, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a country in Central Europe. It is the second most populous country in Europe after Russia, and the most populous member state of the European Union. Germany is situated betwe ...
. The music is based on the opera ''
Carmen'' by
Georges Bizet in an orchestral version arranged especially for this film. In contrast to figure skating movies of former times, ''Carmen on Ice'' is a film without spoken dialogue, which is an innovation in the history of
figure skating
Figure skating is a sport in which individuals, pairs, or groups perform on figure skates on ice. It was the first winter sport to be included in the Olympic Games, when contested at the 1908 Olympics in London. The Olympic disciplines are m ...
.
Plot
The story of ''Carmen on Ice'' is very similar to the opera ''
Carmen''. Analogous to the four-act opera libretto the screenplay has four parts:
*A Square in
Sevilla
Seville (; es, Sevilla, ) is the capital and largest city of the Spanish autonomous community of Andalusia and the province of Seville. It is situated on the lower reaches of the River Guadalquivir, in the southwest of the Iberian Peninsula ...
in front of a cigarette factory: Micaela, a village maiden, brings a letter to the Corporal of Dragoons Don José, which was written by his mother. The cigarette girls emerge from the factory, among them the attractive Carmen, who starts to flirt with the men standing on the square. The only man who does not show interest in Carmen is Don José, who is reading his mother's letter. Finally, however, Carmen manages to attract also his attention by dancing for him and giving him a rose. The other young women are jealous, and one of them attacks Carmen. Carmen slashes her face with a knife. Others involve and start a street fighting, which is stopped by Zuniga, the Lieutenant of Dragoons. Everybody accuses Carmen of having started the fight. Zuniga asks Carmen if she has anything to say and also starts to flirt with her. Carmen, however, is not interested in him. Zuniga instructs José to guard Carmen. José ties up her hands with a rope. To escape, Carmen seduces José in a dance with this rope. The corporal unties her hands, and Carmen can run away. The angry Zuniga instructs his dragoons to guard José.
*Evening at Lillas Pastia's inn: Carmen is waiting impatiently for Don José, who has been released from prison. To drive away her boredom, she starts to dance. The toreador Escamillo enters the inn and is welcomed by the other guests. He shows a virtuoso solo dance and attracts Carmen's attention. While Escamillo leaves the inn with his friends, Don José comes in and is welcomed by Carmen, who shows a solo, which leads in a pair dance with her new lover. Suddenly the sound of bugles is heard calling the soldiers back to barracks. When José wants to leave, Carmen gets angry. José affirms his love to her in a solo with the rose she has given to him at their first meeting. Zuniga suddenly interrupts the two lovers and flirts with Carmen, which makes José so jealous, that he attacks the lieutenant, and leaves the service and joins Carmen and her friends.
*A wild and deserted rocky place at night: Carmen has grown tired of José, her new favorite is the toreador Escamillo. She sits at a campfire and tries to tell fortunes by the shapes made by molten lead dropped into cold water. The shape which she holds in her hand is a skull. Carmen is scared and dances nervously around the campfire. Escamillo comes to the place and makes José jealous by showing him Carmen's fan. The two rivals start fighting. Escamillo emerges victorious and retires with Carmen.
*A square in front of the arena in Seville: The square is full of people who cheer to procession as the bullfighting team with Escamillo arrives. Carmen welcomes the toreador and dreams of a wedding dance with him. After the bullfighting team has entered the arena, Carmen is grabbed by Don José and pulled into an outbuilding. José begs her to return his love, but is rejected by Carmen. Don José loses control of himself and stabs Carmen to death.
Background
![Bundesarchiv Bild 183-1988-0105-018, Katarina Witt](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/3/3d/Bundesarchiv_Bild_183-1988-0105-018%2C_Katarina_Witt.jpg)
''Carmen on Ice'' was filmed in
Spain
, image_flag = Bandera de España.svg
, image_coat = Escudo de España (mazonado).svg
, national_motto = ''Plus ultra'' (Latin)(English: "Further Beyond")
, national_anthem = (English: "Royal March")
, i ...
and
Germany
Germany,, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a country in Central Europe. It is the second most populous country in Europe after Russia, and the most populous member state of the European Union. Germany is situated betwe ...
, citizens of
Sevilla
Seville (; es, Sevilla, ) is the capital and largest city of the Spanish autonomous community of Andalusia and the province of Seville. It is situated on the lower reaches of the River Guadalquivir, in the southwest of the Iberian Peninsula ...
and
Berlin
Berlin ( , ) is the capital and List of cities in Germany by population, largest city of Germany by both area and population. Its 3.7 million inhabitants make it the European Union's List of cities in the European Union by population within ci ...
played bit parts. In 1988
Katarina Witt
Katarina Witt (, ; born 3 December 1965) is a German former figure skater. A two-time Olympic champion, Witt is regarded as one of the greatest ladies' singles figure skaters of all time. Her Laureus profile states "she is remembered most for ...
, who played the title role, had won her second olympic gold medal at the winter games in
Calgary with a
free skating to Carmen.
Brian Boitano
Brian Anthony Boitano (born October 22, 1963) is an American figure skater from Sunnyvale, California. He is the 1988 Olympic champion, the 1986 and 1988 World Champion, and the 1985–1988 U.S. National Champion.
He turned professional foll ...
, who played the part of Don José, became Olympic champion in the same year followed by
Brian Orser
Brian Ernest Orser, (born 18 December 1961) is a Canadian former competitive and professional figure skater and coach to Olympic champions. He is the 1984 and 1988 Olympic silver medallist, 1987 World champion and eight-time (1981–88) C ...
, the Olympic silver medallist of 1988 and actor playing Escamillo. So, it was obvious to cast the film with these stars.
''Carmen on Ice'' was first presented in public on February 8, 1990. and won the Emmy-Award for Outstanding Performance in a Classical Music or Dance Program in 1990.
List of Emmy-Awards 1990
/ref> The award was shared by the film's three stars, Boitano, Orser and Witt. The choreography by Sandra Bezic
Sandra Marie Bezic (born April 6, 1956) is a Canadian pair skater, figure skating choreographer, and television commentator. With her brother Val Bezic, she won the Canadian Figure Skating Championships from 1970 to 1974 and placed ninth at the 1 ...
and Michael Seibert (figure skater)
Michael Seibert (born January 1, 1960) is an American figure skating choreographer and former competitive ice dancer. With Judy Blumberg, he is a three-time World bronze medalist (1983–85), the 1980 Skate Canada International champion, the ...
was influenced by elements of classical ballet
Ballet () is a type of performance dance that originated during the Italian Renaissance in the fifteenth century and later developed into a concert dance form in France and Russia. It has since become a widespread and highly technical form of ...
and flamenco
Flamenco (), in its strictest sense, is an art form based on the various folkloric music traditions of southern Spain, developed within the gitano subculture of the region of Andalusia, and also having historical presence in Extremadura and ...
as well. During the rehearsals the skaters were also coached by flamenco dancer Cristina Hoyos.
Bibliography
*''Art music in figure skating, synchronized swimming and rhythmic gymnastics/Kunstmusik in Eiskunstlauf, Synchronschwimmen und rhythmischer Gymnastik''. PhD thesis by Johanna Beisteiner
Johanna Beisteiner (born 20 February 1976) is an Austrian classical guitarist, singer and arranger.
Life
Johanna Beisteiner received her first guitar lessons at the age of nine at the Josef Matthias Hauer music school in her hometown Wien ...
, Vienna
en, Viennese
, iso_code = AT-9
, registration_plate = W
, postal_code_type = Postal code
, postal_code =
, timezone = CET
, utc_offset = +1
, timezone_DST ...
2005, (German). The PhD thesis contains an extensive description and analysis of ''Carmen on Ice'' (Chapter II/2, pages 105-162)
Article about the PhD thesis of Johanna Beisteiner in the catalogue of the Austrian Library Network. 2005. (German and English)
References
External links
*
on the official website of Katarina Witt
Katarina Witt (, ; born 3 December 1965) is a German former figure skater. A two-time Olympic champion, Witt is regarded as one of the greatest ladies' singles figure skaters of all time. Her Laureus profile states "she is remembered most for ...
* Overture, Square in Sevilla (pair dance Micaela/Don José)
Article about ''Carmen on Ice''
on the website of the Online Magazine ''World Figure Skating''. May 30, 2012.
Article about ''Carmen on Ice''
on the website ''Media/Culture'', August 2008.
''A Delicious Morsel of Camp Art: “Carmen on Ice”''
Article on the website of ''Worldpress'', February 4, 2010.
{{Carmen
1990 films
Georges Bizet
Figure skating films
Films based on Carmen
Films set in the 19th century
Films set in Spain
German sports films
Bullfighting films
Films without speech
German musical films
1990s German films