Rigidly Puritanical 'Madama Butterfly' - reviewed by ROBERT ANDERSON '... a strong yet tender account of Puccini's cunning score.'

Having wondered at scores of Japanese tourists scurrying between my legs on lightning museum visits, I was initially surprised to find most of this operatic cast twice the size I expected. This mature and stately Butterfly is no fifteen-year-old whose wings might be fastened with a pin; she could easily have given her brute of a B F Pinkerton his comeuppance, and her numerous relatives might well have produced the hard knocks he so richly deserved. As it is, the soft-hearted American consul, Sharpless, remains the only character to show the naval cad a piece of his gentle mind. It is as well to remember that Pinkerton's exit aria of vain repentance was a Puccini afterthought.

Continue >>

For help listening to the sound extracts here, please refer to our questions & answers page.