Madama Butterfly

Madama Butterfly is one of those operas that grips you with its beautiful music and touching(if sometimes implausible) story. This production was a disappointment for me. By all means, it is far from terrible, and it is leagues above the 2004 Daniela Dessi performance which was just outrageous, but if I want a really good performance of the opera I'd learn towards the La Scala, Kabaivanska and Ponnelle productions.

Debits: The sound quality was an issue. A lot of the time it was so distant that the chorus in the Humming Chorus were practically inaudible. There is also a lot of reverb, which gives a piercing quality to some of the singing, especially Angelotti and Sgura. The make-up was inauthentic, Angelotti actually looked older than she actually was and none of the cast look Japanese. The 7 minute ballet was dull and uninterestingly choreographed, I just didn't see the point to it. Massimiliano Pisapia I didn't care for at all as Pinkerton, granted he does have a good voice, though not a great one, but in terms of acting, passion and chemistry there was nothing there.

Plaudits: The costumes, sets and lighting are very good, traditional and brightly coloured without feeling garish. The staging is not fussy or dull, the death scene I wasn't particularly moved by but the scenes between Cio-Cio San and Suzuki are very touchingly and sympathetically staged, as is the scene when Sharpless reads the letter from Pinkerton. The processional marches are made good use of and don't feel crowded, and there is a sense of isolation from the world outside. The orchestral playing has the pathos and poetry you'd expect from this beautiful score, and Daniele Calegari's conducting while occasionally a little fast is overall musical and attentive. Raffaella Angeletti while not looking 15 and Japanese is still a very dramatically committed Cio-Cio San. Her voice is not the most even there is, with the soaring top, creamy middle and husky low notes it does sound like three different voices sometimes. That's not a bad thing, it is actually quite interesting and intelligently used, just saying that there are sopranos in the role that have more beautiful in tone and flexible(like Freni).

Annunziata Vestri makes for a very sympathetic and loyal Suzuki, with a rich mezzo voice. Claudio Sgura's Sharpless is excellent, his voice is of great sonority and he is firm and caring. He also has the best diction of the cast. The rest of the cast are mixed, Nino Batatunashvili is an excellent actress as Kate and there is a characterful Goro, but I found the Bonzo and Yamadari on the wobbly side. All in all, this was a Madama Butterfly that I was rather mixed on. 6/10 Bethany Cox