Yes, I have to say that Carmen did the trick with my group of (female) friends, about six of them. They haven't exactly become fans of opera on their own, but I now schedule opera parties (we've had about 4 so far) to encore Carmen, watch Tosca (with JK) and next up, Lohengrin (with JK)--this one will require some serious prep on my part, but the only guy in the group loves Wagner....
Good luck and welcome to the group!