8 Strong Female Characters From Opera And Ballet: International Women's Day

Women in opera and ballet aren’t all damsels in distress and goody-two-shoes princesses. To celebrate International Women's Day, we've picked out our favourite feisty females...

Carmen (Carmen)

buzzfeed.com

A high-spirited gypsy girl and passionate seductress, Carmen revels in her power over men, persuading Don José to desert from the army only to reject him soon after. Brave and stubborn, she speaks the truth when she says in Act IV, 'Carmen will never give in. Free she was born, and free she will die!'. Her words prove grimly prophetic.

Tatyana (Onegin)

buzzfeed.com

Warm-hearted and bookish dreamer Tatiana declares her love for aloof dandy Eugene Onegin, who cruelly rejects her. When he returns years later and crawls back realizing his mistake, she dismisses him. Too little, too late.

Elektra (Elektra)

buzzfeed.com

A woman obsessed with avenging her father's murder, Elektra has no qualms about killing her own mother and her accomplice in the name of revenge. Fanatical in her quest, she bides her time so that she and her brother can exact justice with the very weapon that killed her father.

Alice (Alice's Adventures in Wonderland)

buzzfeed.com

Alice encounters everything from a tap-dancing Mad Hatter to a ruthless executioner on her fantastical trip down the rabbit hole; she dodges death when she meets the Queen of Hearts, survives a visit to a nightmarish kitchen and meets a manic disembodied Cheshire Cat, yet remains ice-cool throughout.

Tosca (Tosca)

A professional singer who earns her own living (a rare attribute in opera), Tosca is prepared to commit murder to save her lover's life. She'd also rather die than than fall into the hands of evil Scarpia's guards and hurls herself out of the window of Rome's Castel Sant'Angelo.

Kitri (Don Quixote)

With her fan flying, sultry Kitri is the apple of her father's eye. Local lad Basilio has taken a fancy to her but Kitri ensures that everything is on her terms as they set off on an adventure across the Spanish countryside.

Donna Elvira (Don Giovanni)

Elvira doesn't just pine away after being deserted by Don Giovanni, but goes to find the notorious lothario and try to win him back. It's Donna Elvira who knows when his time is nearly up, and with a mixture of loyalty and strong-will it is she who makes the last attempt to save him.

Titania (The Dream)

As Queen of the Fairies, Titiana is a force to be reckoned with in the magical world. Proud and sassy, she is quite a match for King Oberon.