Theatre & Performance Yukichi Hattori both star dancer, creative talent in Carmen
Yukichi Hattori both star dancer, creative talent in Carmen
The Alberta Ballet's Carmen.
Alberta Ballet
Paula Citron
Published March 24, 2015 Updated May 12, 2018
Yukichi Hattori does double duty at Alberta Ballet. He is both a star dancer and a rising choreographic talent.
When artistic director Jean Grand-Maître commissioned Hattori to create a new Carmen for the company, he was determined to find a fresh angle. After reading the original 1845 Prosper Mérimée novella several times, Hattori focused on a Carmen who was a modern woman. "She is not a victim," he says. "Carmen is a strong-willed person who has been held back by the social status of her time. Today she could have been a CEO or a politician. She just doesn't fall in love with a matador; she dreams of being a matador."
Because Hattori's scenario has been influenced by the novella rather than Bizet's opera, the soldier Don José is defined by selfish love. He is a premeditated killer driven by jealousy who murders not one, but two men, including Carmen's Gypsy husband. Says Hattori: "This is a story ballet, so I'm concentrating on storytelling. I think we've got something real cool here."
Alberta Ballet's Carmen runs in Calgary from March 26 to 28.
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