Act 1
We are in Seville, about 1820. It’s mid-day, and hot. Soldiers, nominally on guard duty, lounge about the town square. The factory bell rings and the women workers emerge to flirt with the men gathered around. In the ‘Habanera’, Carmen warns them that love is uncontrollable. She tosses a flower at José who is doing his best to look the other way.

Women run from the factory shouting and arguing. Zuniga, the Chief Officer, sends José in to find out the cause of the commotion. He returns with Carmen who has bloodily attacked a fellow worker. In the ‘Seguidilla’, Carmen sings of a ‘certain soldier’ she loves and for whom she’ll be waiting at Lillas Pastia’s tavern. José cannot resist Carmen’s seduction and lets Carmen slip away.

Act 2
Two months later, Carmen and her two friends Frasquita and Mercédès are entertaining Zuniga and other officers at the tavern when the famous matador Escamillo arrives, who introduces himself with the ‘Toreador Song’, describing the excitement of bullfighting, while staring at Carmen.

The smugglers Dancaïre and Remendado have need of the girls for a job. Carmen declines this time, because she’s in love. José, just released from prison, arrives. He reveals the flower that Carmen threw at him and pledges his love to her. Chief Officer, Zuniga returns. “You chose a soldier over an officer?” he asks Carmen and tells José to get lost. The two started fighting. Carmen calls the others and they pull Zuniga away. José realised that he has no choice but to go with Carmen and the smugglers.

Act 3
Some time later, Carmen is already tired of José, and says he should leave their life as smugglers in the mountains. José is left to guard the camp. Toreador Escamillo, who is infatuated with Carmen, comes searching for her in the smugglers’ camp. He believes that the love between Carmen and José is over now because “Carmen’s affairs never last six months.’’ The furious José engages him in a fight until the smugglers return.

Escamillo invites everyone to his next bullfight in Sevilla. “But we’ll see each other again”, says José, before leaving.

Act 4
Outside the bullring in Seville, the desperate José approaches Camen when she is alone. He pleads with her to take him back; he’ll go back to being a smuggler, whatever she wants. But Carmen is implacable. She removes the ring José once gave her. As Carmen enters the bullring, José grabs her in a jealous rage, and stabs her to death.