Bizet’s shimmering Orientalist score, written in 1863, some years before he composed Carmen, sets the scene in Ceylon where a community of pearl-divers is thrown into turmoil by the arrival of Leila, a beautiful singer whose role is to propitiate the gods while the fishers go about their dangerous business.

It is best known for the famous duet sung by the lovestruck tenor and baritone, ‘Au fond du temple saint’, but the whole opera is a beautifully atmospheric piece, gorgeously orchestrated, which perfectly evokes the sultry heat of the tropics and the torrid passions of its protagonists.

Sung in French with English surtitles.

Please note: booking opens from Monday 15th April 2013

Learn more about London operas within the West End.