Accustomed to virtuous heroines, Parisian opera-goers were shocked by a promiscuous, lower-class anti-heroine who is murdered on stage, breaking all moral conventions.

Working in a Seville cigarette factory emphasized her lower-class, independent status. The scene of female workers openly smoking on stage was considered highly provocative.

Bizet adapted the melody from "El Arreglito" by Sebastián Iradier. Upon discovering it was not an anonymous traditional tune, he added a formal credit to the vocal score.

Escamillo is a famous matador whose rousing aria describes the roaring crowd and the physical peril of the arena. This establishes him as Don José's hyper-masculine rival.