The background of Madama Butterfly is set in Nagasaki in the early 1890s. The story begins with a wedding between 15-year-old geisha, Cio-Cio San, known as Butterfly and US Navy Lieutenant Pinkerton. After a short period, Pinkerton leaves Nagasaki, promising that he will return next spring. Three years have passed. Cio-Cio San has rejected marriage offers many times. She is determined to wait for him. However, the only thing she gets in the end is a heartless betrayal.

The original version of the opera by Giacomo Puccini had its premiere on February 17, 1904, at La Scala in Milan. It was the only fiasco in Puccini's career. The performance ended in an ominous hush, which suddenly transformed into laughter, booing and hissing. Puccini revised the opera, splitting the second act into two and making other changes. On May 28, 1904, this version was performed in Brescia and was a huge success. Now Madama Butterfly is a staple of the standard operatic repertoire for companies around the world and it ranks as one of the most-performed operas worldwide.

Time: 2012/9/21-23 Friday-Sunday 20:00
Venue: Guangzhou Opera House Hall
Original director: Anthony Minghella
Conductor: Daniel Oren

Cast:
Cio-Cio San
Hui He (Sept 21,23)
Cynthia Lawrence (Sept 22)

Pinkerton
Fabio Sartori (Sept 21,23)
Adam Diegel (Sept 22)

Sharpless
Carlo Striuli (Sept 21,23)
Vytautas Juozapaitis (Sept 22)

Suzuki
Laima Jonutyte (Sept 21,22,23)

Orchestra: Shenzhen Symphony Orchestra
Chorus: Lithuanian National Opera and Ballet Theatre

Sung in Italian with Chinese & English subtitles