"Madama Butterfly" flies to Beijing

BEIJING, May. 10 -- On the heels of "Turandot", another Puccini opera has been adapted for the Chinese audience. "Madame Butterfly", a collaboration by the National Center for the Performing Arts and the Central Conservatory of Music, landed in Beijing, Thursday night. This year marks the 150th anniversary of Puccini's birth, the production serves as a tribute to the revered Italian composer.

"Madame Butterfly" is based on a story by American writer John Luther Long, which Puccini later turned into an opera. It takes place a century ago in the city of Nagasaki. Pinkton, a lieutenant in the U.S. navy takes a 15-year-old geisha Cio-Cio-San as a bride and then abandons her.

The tragedy appears to foreshadow the conflict that arose when the Japanese culture clashed with Western cultures during the nineteenth century.

The current Chinese production plays the opera straight. It delivers the classic storybook images with even stronger Oriental treatment. There are large wooden homes with sliding doors, set against the rural hills of Japan; there are flowing silk kimonos; tatami and an endless array of cherry blossoms.

Director Gary Burgess, who has directed the opera numerous times in different stages, voices his satisfaction with the set, designed by Dai Yannian.

The National Center of Performing Arts has recruited a capable cast. It includes Yao Hong, who gives an effective portrayal as Cio-Cio-Sa. Xie Tian sang Pinkerton in a big voice and a shapely Italian style.

(Source: CCTV.com)