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© Liceu
Madama Butterfly
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 January 2051 | ||||||
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Tragedy in three acts
Libretto by Giuseppe Giacosa and Luigi Illica based on the homonymous play by David Belasco, inspired by the story of John Luther Long.
Synopsis
Act 1
In 1904, a U.S. naval officer named Pinkerton rents a house on a hill in Nagasaki, Japan, for himself and his soon-to-be wife, "Butterfly". Her real name is Cio-Cio-San (from the Japanese word for "butterfly" (蝶々, chōchō, pronounced [tɕoꜜːtɕoː]); -san is a plain honorific). She is a 15-year-old Japanese girl whom he is marrying for convenience, and he intends to leave her once he finds a proper American wife, since Japanese divorce laws are very lax. The wedding is to take place at the house. Butterfly had been so excited to marry an American that she had earlier secretly converted to Christianity. After the wedding ceremony, her uninvited uncle, a bonze, who has found out about her conversion, comes to the house, curses her and orders all the guests to leave, which they do while renouncing her. Pinkerton and Butterfly sing a love duet and prepare to spend their first night together.
Act 2
Three years later, Butterfly is still waiting for Pinkerton to return, as he had left shortly after their wedding. Her maid Suzuki keeps trying to convince her that he is not coming back, but Butterfly does not believe her. Goro, the marriage broker who arranged her marriage, keeps trying to marry her off again, but she does not listen to him either. The American consul, Sharpless, comes to the house with a letter which he has received from Pinkerton which asks him to break some news to Butterfly: that Pinkerton is coming back to Japan, but Sharpless cannot bring himself to finish it because Butterfly becomes very excited to hear that Pinkerton is coming back. Sharpless asks Butterfly what she would do if Pinkerton were not to return. She then reveals that she gave birth to Pinkerton's son after he had left and asks Sharpless to tell him.
From the hill house, Butterfly sees Pinkerton's ship arriving in the harbour. She and Suzuki prepare for his arrival, and then they wait. Suzuki and the child fall asleep, but Butterfly stays up all night waiting for him to arrive.
Act 3
Suzuki wakes up in the morning and Butterfly finally falls asleep. Sharpless and Pinkerton arrive at the house, along with Pinkerton's new American wife, Kate. They have come because Kate has agreed to raise the child. But, as Pinkerton sees how Butterfly has decorated the house for his return, he realizes he has made a huge mistake. He admits that he is a coward and cannot face her, leaving Suzuki, Sharpless, and Kate to break the news to Butterfly. Agreeing to give up her child if Pinkerton comes himself to see her, she then prays to statues of her ancestral gods, says goodbye to her son, and blindfolds him. She places a small American flag in his hands and goes behind a screen, stabbing herself with her father's seppuku knife. Pinkerton rushes in, but he is too late, and Butterfly dies.
Program and cast
Approximate running time - 2h 50min
MADAMA BUTTERFLY (CIO-CIO-SAN): Sonya Yoncheva | December 9, 13, 16, 20, 23 and 27
MADAMA BUTTERFLY (CIO-CIO-SAN): Saioa Hernández | December 10, 14, 17, 21 and 28
MADAMA BUTTERFLY (CIO-CIO-SAN): Ailyn Pérez | December 8, 11, 15 and 22
SUZUKI: Annalisa Stroppa | December 9, 13, 16, 20, 23 and 27
SUZUKI: Teresa Iervolino | December 10, 14, 17, 21 and 28
SUZUKI: Gemma Coma-Alabert | December 8, 11, 15 and 22
KATE PINKERTON: Montserrat Seró
BENJAMIN FRANKLIN PINKERTON: Matthew Polenzani | December 9, 13, 16, 20, 23 and 27
BENJAMIN FRANKLIN PINKERTON: Fabio Sartori | December 10, 14, 17, 21 and 28
BENJAMIN FRANKLIN PINKERTON: Celso Albelo | December 8, 11, 15 and 22
SHARPLESS: Lucas Meachem | December 9, 13, 16, 20, 23 and 27
SHARPLESS: Thomas Mayer | December 10, 14, 17, 21 and 28
SHARPLESS: Gerardo Bullón | 8, 11, 15 and 22 December
GORO: Juan Noval Moro: December 9, 11, 14, 16, 20, 22 and 27
GORO: Pablo García López | December 8, 10, 13, 15, 17, 21, 23 and 28
PRINCEP YAMADORI: Carlos Cosías
L'ONCLE BONZO: David Lagares
Stage Direction: Moshe Leiser and Patrice Caurier
Set Design: Christian Fenouillat
Costume Design: Agostino Cavalca
Lighting Design: Christophe Forey
Production: Gran Teatre del Liceu and Royal Opera House
Symphony Orchestra of the Gran Teatre del Liceu
Conductor: Paolo Bortolameolli
Gran Teatre del Liceu
Barcelona's opera house, the Gran Teatre del Liceu, was founded on the Rambla in 1847 and has continued over the years to fulfil its role as a culture and arts centre and one of the symbols of the city.
Today it is publicly-owned (by the Government of Catalonia, Barcelona City Council, Barcelona Provincial Council and the Ministerio de Educación, Cultura y Deporte) and administered by the Fundació del Gran Teatre del Liceu which, in addition to the aforementioned bodies, incorporates the Patronage Council and the Societat del Gran Teatre del Liceu (the old society of owners).
Origins: From 1837 to 1847
The Liceu evolved out of the Sociedad Dramática de Aficionados (Society of theatre-lovers) set up in 1837 at the instigation of Manuel Gibert in the former convent of Montsió by members of the National Militia, an organization of armed citizens with liberal leanings.
Barcelona's economy and population were growing fast at the time and the city needed a music conservatory. This led to the conversion of the Sociedad Dramática into the Liceo Filármonico Dramático Barcelonés de S.M. la Reina Isabel II (Barcelona Dramatic and Philharmonic Lyceum of HM Queen Isabel II). In addition to its theatrical activities, the new organization cultivated Italian-style singing and music.
The building on the Rambla
The original building was solemnly opened on 4 April 1847. The plans had been drawn up by Miquel Garriga i Roca, subsequently assisted by Josep Oriol Mestres. The project was funded by selling shares, which meant that many of the boxes and seats were to be privately owned. The shareholders formed the Societat del Gran Teatre del Liceu, known as the “Societat de Propietaris” (Society of Owners), which was in sole charge of running the Gran Teatre del Liceu from 1855 onwards, after it was legally separated from the Conservatori del Gran Teatre del Liceu.
The theatre was operated by impresarios who were given a concession to stage a specific number of productions in exchange for the proceeds from the sale of tickets not reserved for the Societat itself. This system was to endure until 1980.
The creation of the Consortium
By the last quarter of the 20th century this management system was no longer viable. In 1980, to avert the danger of the disappearance of an institution of such worldwide cultural renown, the Generalitat Catalonia's first government in modern times – set up a consortium, the Consorci del Gran Teatre del Liceu, which also incorporated Barcelona City Council and the Societat del Gran Teatre del Liceu. Barcelona Provincial Council joined the Consortium in 1985, followed by the Spanish Ministry of Culture in 1986. From then on the Consortium took over operation of the theatre.
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