Madama Butterfly

When your home is the Sydney Opera House, going elsewhere during renovations will always test the loyalty of your guests. Opera Australia is using the Capitol Theatre for its only mainstage production since the Joan Sutherland Theatre closed in May for a makeover. The choice is a tried-and-tested production of one of the most loved operas.

Puccini’s Madama Butterfly was directed by Moffatt Oxenbould in 1997, while he led Opera Australia. It’s been restaged a number of times, performed in both Sydney and Melbourne as recently as 2015. Artistic Director Lyndon Terracini announced on opening night that this was its last outing.

After 20 years, that’s probably a good call. It’s a beautifully-staged show and remains powerful and effective, if a little dated. The design remains the star: Peter England and Russell Cohen’s set of a Japanese home is simple but stunning, with shoji screen walls, wooden platforms and a moat of water. The house feels open but also small and claustrophobic for the trapped Butterfly.

The production draws on Japanese theatre traditions such as Noh and Kabuki, using non-performing assistants to help with props and costumes, and to help drive the action. They often walk through the water, adding a mystical sense to this imagined oriental world (Puccini never went to Japan - and the designers have incorporated a sense of foreign exotica into what we see on stage).

Karah Son, as the geisha Cio-Cio San - or Madama Butterfly - sings beautifully and gets a well-deserved, rousing cheer (and standing ovation from some) during the curtain call. In the first act, she was difficult to hear in this enormous theatre (acoustics can be problematic at the Capitol). But she was louder in the second act, which includes the aria ‘un bel dì’ and other crucial songs. Her performance was magnificent.

Alongside Mexican tenor Diego Torre, who plays Pinkerton, two of the standouts here are Australians Sian Pendry as Suzuki and Barry Ryan as Sharpless. Ryan’s acting is wonderful too.

Madama Butterfly has some beautiful moments, none more so than the humming chorus (‘Coro a bocca chiusa’). Beautiful gowns, cherry blossoms falling from the sky and flames dancing on water add to the brilliance of the score.

With wonderful performances in a well-refined and stunning production, it’s easy to see why the opera faithful return. Time to retire this wonderful show.

Peter Gotting

Photographer: Prudence Upton.