Synopsis

Act I -- Guard duty is enlivened for Morales and his comrades by Micaëla, a young girl who is looking for the soldier Don José. She learns that he is in the next shift, and she promises to return. Don José and his fellow soldiers do arrive, and he is being questioned by his commanding officer, Zuniga, when the girls who manufacture cigarettes in a nearby factory enter. Last to arrive is Carmen who warns of the dangers of love. Micaëla returns to bring news of home. Don José is affirming his love for her when the screaming cigarette girls announce that Carmen has knifed a co-worker. Carmen is placed under arrest, but she convinces Don José that by setting her free he can win her heart. She makes good her escape, and Don José is arrested.

Act I I -- Carmen, Frasquita, and Mercedes entertain Zuniga and other soldiers. The bull- fighter Escamillo arrives with a crowd of his admirers and entertains them with a description of his career. Alone with the girls, the smugglers Dancairo and Remendado describe a smuggling expedition. Carmen will not go — the soldier she loves is released from prison and is coming to see her. The others urge Carmen to bring José into the band of smugglers. Carmen's efforts to entice him are fruitless. He insists he loves her — he has kept the flower she threw at him during his weeks in prison — but he will not desert. Zuniga's arrival, however, drives him to jealous fury and he attacks his officer. Now he has no choice but to join the smugglers.

Act III -- Scene one: The smugglers set up camp in the mountains. Frasquita and Mercedes read cards to discover glorious futures. Carmen reads the cards and finds death. All go to bring their goods across the border, leaving José to guard the camp. Micaëla enters alone, terrified of her surroundings, and hides. Escamillo arrives in search of the gypsy girl who has attracted him. José realizes the girl is Carmen, and the two men fight. Micaëla is discovered and reveals that José's mother is dying. Carmen urges José to leave. He goes, warning Carmen that he will come back for her.

Scene two: The parade to the bullring is climaxed by the arrival of Escamillo and Carmen, who proclaim their mutual love. Carmen is warned by her friends that José is waiting for her in the crowd, but she insists on confronting him. José begs her to return, but she defies him. As she attempts to join the victorious Escamillo, the heartbroken José kills her.