You just never know what’s going to happen when you enter a pavilion at the Venice Biennale! One minute you’re wandering into Xavier Veilhan’s show in the French Pavilion, expecting to see a few of the artist’s tech-y, angular sculptures, the next you’re in the midst of a blow-out opera performance. A great young singer named Farrah El Dibnay was performing the famous “Habanera” aria from Georges Bizet’s Carmen (1875), accompanied by a pianist, when I visited this afternoon, holding the crowd captivated. A little excerpt is above. Veilhan has outfitted the pavilion in handsome wood paneling, turning it into a kind of makeshift performance space and recording studio. Nice stuff! El Dibnay told me she will be performing all week, so swing by and keep your fingers crossed you catch her.
If you miss her, do not fear: more than 100 musicians have been tapped to perform over the run of the Biennale.