Darius Confirms ‘Opera Star’ Status with Carmen

Darius Campbell (formerly Danesh), last seen on stage in Trevor Nunn‘s ill-fated musical mounting of Gone with the Wind, will turn his hand to opera when he sings the lead in Bizet’s Carmen at the O2 Arena next month.

Campbell, who has adopted his mother’s maiden name to reflect his Scottish roots, has landed the role of Escamillo after winning recent ITV reality series Popstar To Operastar (during which he sang an aria from Carmen). He will perform on the final night of a three-night run at the O2, from 21 to 23 May 2010.

The production, which is directed by Opera Factory founder David Freeman, will be performed on a “grand and spectacular scale” by a cast of over 200 performers, including dancers, acrobats and fire-eaters.

Raymond Gubbay, the classical music promoter behind Carmen, said: “The O2 is a wonderful venue to stage such a dramatic and powerful opera. We are extremely excited to have the opportunity to transform this amazing space and produce the first opera there. Arena opera is proving more popular than ever.”

After coming to public attention as a contestant on reality TV shows Pop Stars and Pop Idol, Glasgow-born Danesh made his West End debut in 2005 playing Billy Blynn in Chicago (See News, 19 Oct 2005). He went on to play Sky Masterson in Michael Grandage’s revival of Guys and Dolls on tour. His other stage credits include, as a child, The Trojans and Carmen. In the pop sphere, Danesh has had five UK top ten singles, including his self-penned “Colourblind”.