UK Theatre Network

A smile is the key to the gates of paradise.

 At the turn of the 19^th century the lure of the exotic attracted a fair number of European artists such as Gauguin, Debussy or Puccini. Japan was a particularly popular subject. Puccini researched the country’s native folk melodies in depth, attempting to capture the pattern of Japanese intonation. The result is a truly haunting score.  The Ukrainian National Opera is now touring their production sung in Italian of one of Puccini best loved tragedies.

There is much to praise. The young Korean singer Elena Dee playing Cio Cio San makes this Madama Butterfly an outstanding production. Her faultless vocals have clarity and her sensitive and touching portrayal of the doomed heroine is impressive. The scene when she is forced to abandon her child is played with the right amount of emotion but Dee avoids exaggerated pathos. Ruslan Zinevych plays her American lover, naval Lieutenant Pinkerton, in a smug and caddish way. He considers his 15-year old bride a poppet, an attractive butterfly whose wings he feels free to tear. Later he is wrecked by regret. Vladimir Dragos is the sympathetic US consul Sharpless who warns Pinkerton right from the start: “Be careful, she trusts us.” Zarui Vardanean as the loyal maid Suzuki and Anatol Arcea as Goro as the cringing marriage broker should not be overlooked.