Carmen at the Lowry

A dramatic spectacle from the outset, the show fuses flamenco with Spanish guitar and a 26-strong band of bugles and drums.

The audience is taken back to the 19th Century roots of the Gypsy heroine, Carmen de Triana, played with a mesmerising sensuality by Lalo Tejada.

As the story unfolds of Carmen,s love for Don Jose, danced with athletic

grace by Marco Vargas, the intensity of music and dance grows to the dramatic entrance of the star of the show.

A beautiful white stallion, trained in the style of haute ecole dressage,

bursts onto the stage to dance with Carmen, who has fallen for its picador rider, Lucas.

The horse can,t fail to win the audiences, favour as it moves with an incredible grace around the stage that is dwarfed by its performance.

And as the show progresses to its final scene the dancers, moves are charged with a ferocity and tempo that leaves you gasping for breath.

So throw aside the winter blues and envelop yourself in the fervour and excitement of Carmen.

Carmen at the Lowry, until Sunday.