Introduction

The story of Madama Butterfly juxtaposes a cultural collision between East and West, begging the question whether two distinctly different cultures can understand each other. The story begins like a fairy tale, but ends in tragic disaster. Cio-Cio-San (Madama Butterfly) leaves her life as a Geisha and fulfills her fantasy wish by marrying an American naval lieutenant, Benjamin Franklin Pinkerton. Yielding totally to her new husband, Butterfly abandons her ancient religion and converts to Christianity, which results in renunciation by her family. Pinkerton is a shallow young man looking for pleasure. He never intends for Butterfly to be his real wife and doesn’t understand what the consequences of his actions will be.

For a brief period of time after their wedding they live very happily, but Pinkerton is eventually sent back to the United States. He tells Butterfly that he will return, but, of course, he is not being truthful with her. Shortly after his return to the United States, he marries an American wife.  Butterfly is patiently waiting, and nothing can dissuade her from believing that Pinkerton loves her and will return to Japan.

Unbeknownst to Pinkerton, Butterfly has had a child in his absence.  He does indeed return, but with his new wife Kate. Pinkerton learns from the American Consul that Butterfly has a child. He cannot face her, so he sends his wife Kate Pinkerton to claim his child. When Butterfly meets Kate and realizes that he will never come back, her only recourse to save her honor is through ritual suicide, the noble death of hara kiri.

Butterfly’s emotions and thoughts shift in a profound psychological musical drama that poignantly portrays the pathos of the heroine’s heart-wrenching state of mind as the dilemma of each crisis unfolds. She becomes a genuine tragic figure as she develops from childlike innocence to adult understanding.  She bravely faces her conflicts and destiny, but her true heroic stature occurs when she accepts the horrible reality that she must give up her child in order for him to have a better life.

The world premiere performance of the Opera was held on February 17, 1904 at La Scala in Milan, Italy. The American premiere took place in 1906 in Washington, D.C., and was sung in English. The world premiere was expected to be a great success, but it turned out to be a disaster!  The audience booed, shouted remarks to the singers, and laughed out loud, until the evening dissolved into total chaos. Puccini, usually received great praise for his work, but the reaction to this opera was devastating. The production closed after only one performance, and Puccini immediately began to make revisions. The new and improved version was presented three months later at the Teatro Grande in Brescia; it was a resounding triumph. However, Puccini continued to revise the opera until 1906, when a final version was presented at the Opéra Comique in Paris.

Characters

Benjamin Franklin Pinkerton, tenor, A lieutenant in the U.S. Navy
Goro, tenor, A marriage broker character (Goh-roh)
Sharpless, baritone, American Consul
Suzuki (Soo-tsoo-kee), mezzo-soprano, Butterfly’s maid
Cio-Cio-San (Choh-Choh-San), soprano, A young geisha girl of a noble family
The Imperial Commissioner, tenor
Official Registrar, baritone
Lo Zio Bonzo (Loh Tsee-oh Bohn-Tsoh), bass-baritone, Butterfly’s Uncle, a Buddhist Priest
Yamadori (Yah-mah-doh-ree), baritone, A Japanese Prince
Kate Pinkerton, mezzo-soprano, Pinkerton’s American Wife
Cio-Cio-San's mother, mezzo-soprano.
Cio-Cio-San's aunt, mezzo-soprano.
Cio-Cio-San's cousin, soprano.
Cio-Cio-San's son Trouble

The Story

Location: A hilltop house in Nagaski, Japan
Time: Around 1900

ACT I

A. U.S. Navy Lieutenant B.F. Pinkerton inspects the house he has leased from the marriage broker, Goro, who has procured for the Lieutenant three servants and a geisha wife named Cio-Cio-San, also known as Butterfly. Servants scurry, preparing for the impending wedding of Cio-Cio-San and the American navy Lieutenant, B.F. Pinkerton. When the American Consul arrives (Sharpless), Pinkerton admits that his contracted marriage to the young geisha is one of convenience and pleasure (“Dovunque al mondo”), to be tossed aside when his ship leaves port. The Consul warns Pinkerton that the girl loves him completely and has renounced her ancestral religion to marry him. At this moment, Cio-Cio-San is heard in the distance joyously singing of her wedding (“Amiche, io son venuta al richiamo d’amor”).  Butterfly, as Cio-Cio-San is called by her family and friends, arrives accompanied by her fellow geishas. She is introduced to her husband to-be, and asks that she be allowed to keep her father’s ceremonial sword which he committed hari-kari (honorable suicide). Her relatives arrive, and the wedding contract is signed.

The celebration is interrupted by Butterfly’s uncle, the Buddhist priest Bonze, who has learned of her renunciation of her Buddhist faith, and furiously curses her. The horrified family denounces her, and Pinkerton angrily drives them away. He gently comforts his weeping bride and they are soon clasped in each other’s arms. They gaze at the starry sky and pour out their passionate love in one of opera’s most famous duets (“Bimba, non piangere”).

ACT II

Three years have passed since Pinkerton’s departure. Butterfly’s servant, Suzuki, prays for help in solving their financial problems, but Butterfly still believes that Pinkerton will return, as he promised. In the famous aria “Un bel di” (One beautiful day) she describes the joy she will feel on the day his ship sails into the harbor. The Consul arrives with a letter to her from Pinkerton. The marriage broker, Goro, brings in the wealthy Prince Yamadori as a suitor for the abandoned woman.  Butterfly rejects Yamadori, reminding everyone that she is still married to Pinkerton. The Consul finally continues reading Pinkerton’s callous letter, omitting the fact that the officer has married another woman.  He asks Butterfly what she would do if her American husband never returned, and the girl leaves the room, deeply hurt. She would rather kill herself, before going back to her life as a geisha (“Che tua madre”).  She returns carrying a blue-eyed child and implores the Consul to tell Pinkerton that he surely must return, knowing that she and his son are waiting. Sharpless is deeply moved, and picking the child up, asks his name. Butterfly responds to him saying “Today, my name is Trouble.  But on the day that my father returns, my name shall be Joy.” The shaken Sharpless vows to tell Pinkerton, and leaves in despair. A cannon booms, signaling the arrival of Pinkerton’s ship. Dizzy with joy, Butterfly and Suzuki decorate the house with fragrant flower petals singing (“Tutti fior”). As night falls, they poke holes in one of the paper walls surrounding the house and watch the harbor for Pinkerton’s return.

Act III

It is dawn, and only Butterfly remains awake, still watching the harbor.  Suzuki persuades her to sleep for a while. Butterfly hums a lullaby to her child, carrying him into another room (“Dormi amor mio”).  Pinkerton arrives with his American wife, Kate, and Consul, in order to take the child back to America. Inside the house, Pinkerton sees every sign of Butterfly’s faithful devotion and realizes the impact of what he has done. He leaves, unable to face the consequences of his actions (“Addio, fiorito asil”). Butterfly runs into the room expecting to see Pinkerton, but finds only Sharpless and Kate. The heartbroken Butterfly quietly agrees to give up her son to his father, provided that Pinkerton himself returns for the child. Alone, Butterfly takes out her father’s sword and reads the inscription: “Death with honor for the one who can no longer live with honor.” In anguish she embraces her son and sings a poignant farewell to him (“Tu, piccolo iddio!”). She sends him off to play, then goes behind a screen and stabs herself with the sword.  Pinkerton returns, only to find her lifeless body.

Giacomo Puccini (1856-1924)

Giacomo Puccini was born in Lucca, Italy on December 22, 1858. He came from a family of church organists, choirmasters and composers.  As a boy he studied music with an uncle, then with Carlo Angeloni.  As a teenager he served as an organist to the area churches and played the piano as entertainment at social events. In March 1876 he walked over thirty kilometers to attend a performance of Verdi’s latest opera success, Aida. This event changed his life, he decided that he would make opera his life’s work.

In 1880 he enrolled at the Milan Conservatory; he worked diligently at his music and received his diploma in 1883. In that same year he entered a competition for an unpublished one-act opera. His work, Le Villi, was not even given an honorable mention. However, it caught the attention of music publisher, and promoter Giulio Ricordi, and librettist Arrigo Boito. They decided to fund a premiere production of the work.  Ricordi later commissioned several of Puccini’s most successful operas, and his publishing house handled the printing rights for Puccini’s music scores.

Puccini collaborated with several librettists on his works, including Luigi Illica and Giuseppe Giacosa. His most famous operas include: Manon Lescaut (1893), La Bohème (1896), Tosca (1900), Madama Butterfly (1904), La Fanciulla del West (1810), Il Trittico (1918 – a collection of three one-act operas, including the comedy Gianni Schicchi), and Turandot (1926 – unfinished at the time of Puccini’s death and later completed by Franco Alfano, one of Puccini’s protégées).

Puccini was somewhat reclusive; he preferred his home in the country to hectic city life. He enjoyed hunting and long walks through the countryside. He was also a lifelong smoker, particularly of cigars, and in 1924 was diagnosed with throat cancer. He underwent surgery, which left him no longer able to speak, and died of a heart attack four days later on November 29, 1924 in Brussels.

Librettos

Luigi Illica and Giuseppe Giacosa was one of the most successful in the whole history of Italian opera. Although Illica and Giacosa are best remembered for their work with Puccini, each had an active career of his own. 

Luigi Illica (1857-1919)

He had a rough beginning; at an early age he ran away to sea, and in 1876 he found himself fighting the Turks. Three years later, however, he moved to the relatively peaceful enclave of Milan Italy and there began his literary career. In 1882 he produced a collection of prose sketches, Farfalle, effetti di luce, and the following year wrote his first play, I Narbonnier-Latour. His greatest success in this field of playwriting was a comedy in Milanese dialect, L'eriditaa di Felis (1891).

He began writing librettos in 1889. While his work on three of Puccini's operas is recognized as his chief contribution to the field, he also wrote librettos for several other composers, including those for Giordano's Andrea Chenier (1896--the same year as La Bohème), an opera still popular and performed today, and two operas of Mascagni.

Giuseppe Giacosa (1847-1906)

Giuseppe Giacosa began his professional life, not as a writer, but as a lawyer. He graduated in law from Turin University and immediately joined his father's firm in Milan. He moved permanently into the literary world, however, when his one-act verse comedy, Una partita a scacchi, became a popular success. From 1888-1894 Giacosa held the chair of literature and dramatic art at the Milan Conservatory.

The Puccini/Illica/Giacosa partnership was organized by the publisher Giulio Ricordi in 1893. The head of the most powerful publishing firm in Italy during the 19th century, Ricordi had the ability to make or break any young composer who came along, much in the same way that a CEO of a major record label can do today.

Having taken Puccini under his wing, Ricordi was intent on hiring the best writers to work with the young composer on his La Bohème – he found them in Illica and Giacosa. The three had a very clear division of responsibilities when working together: it was Illica's job to plan the scenario (i.e. the opera's plan, and division into acts and scenes) and to draft the dialogue; next, Giacosa transformed the prose into polished verse; finally Puccini set this verse to music. This collaboration was such a success that the three worked together (dividing the responsibilities in the same way) on two other operas: Tosca (1900) and Madama Butterfly (1904).

The collaboration ended with the death of Giacosa in 1906. Puccini continued to discuss the idea of translating the story of Marie Antoinette into an operatic setting with Illica, but this project never came to fruition. For his final operas, Puccini turned to other librettists.

Where Did They Come Up With This Plot?

The origin of the opera’s story can be traced through a chain of literary works.  A French novelist named Pierre Loti (1850-1923) wrote a story called Madame Chrysantheme that attracted the interest of American writer John Luther Long (1861-1927). In 1897 Long wrote and published a story called Madama Butterfly in the magazine Century that combined elements from Loti’s work with the facts of a true incident related to Long by his sister, who had been a missionary in Japan. The American playwright/stage director David Belasco (1853-1931) turned Long’s story into a one-act play that premiered on Broadway on March 5, 1900. Belasco’s play became the basis of Puccini’s opera.

A Great Show, But A Rough Beginning

Following its New York premiere in 1900, David Belasco’s play Madama Butterfly was also produced in London. Puccini was urged to see the play, and he attended one of the London performances. Although his comprehension of English was limited, he clearly understood the dramatic impact of the story. He immediately requested the rights to Belasco’s play so that he could begin work on a new opera, but permission wasn’t granted until the following year. The libretto for the opera quickly began to take shape in the hands of Giacosa and Illica, who also collaborated with Puccini on La Bohème and Tosca.

Progress on the new opera was temporarily halted when Puccini was injured in an automobile accident in February 1903, but he managed to finish the score by the end of the year. The world premiere performance of Madama Butterfly was held on February 17, 1904 at La Scala in Milan, Italy. The American premiere took place in 1906 in Washington, D.C., and was sung in English.

The world premiere of Madama Butterfly was expected to be a great success, but it turned out to be a disaster! The audience booed, shouted remarks to the singers, and laughed out loud, until the evening dissolved into total chaos. Puccini, who usually enjoyed great praise for his work, was devastated. The production closed after only one performance, and Puccini began making revisions. The new and improved version was presented three months later at the Teatro Grande in Brescia; it was a resounding triumph. However, Puccini continued to revise the opera until 1906, when a final version was presented at the Opéra-Comique in Paris.

What Was In The World…?

Galveston hurricane leaves an estimated 6,000 to 8,000 dead (Sept. 8). According to the census, the nation's population numbers nearly 76 million.

1901 McKinley's second inauguration (March 4). He is shot (Sept. 6) by anarchist Leon Czolgosz in Buffalo, N.Y., and later dies from his wounds (Sept. 14). He is succeeded by his vice president, Theodore Roosevelt.

1903 U.S. acquires Panama Canal Zone (treaty signed Nov. 17). Wright brothers make the first controlled, sustained flight in heavier-than-air aircraft at Kitty Hawk, N.C. (Dec. 17).

Russo-Japanese War begins – competition for Korea and Manchuria.

Theodore Roosevelt's second inauguration (March 4).

San Francisco earthquake leaves 500 dead or missing and destroys about 4 square miles of the city (April 18).

1907 Oklahoma becomes 46th State.

1908 Bureau of Investigation, forerunner of the FBI, is established (July 26).

1909 William Howard Taft is inaugurated as the 27th president (March 4). Mrs. Taft has 80 Japanese cherry trees planted along the banks of the Potomac River.

1913 Woodrow Wilson is inaugurated as the 28th president (March 4). Seventeenth Amendment to the Constitution is ratified, providing for the direct election of U.S. senators by popular vote rather than by the state legislatures (April 8).

World War I: U.S. enters World War I, declaring war on Germany (April 6, 1917) and Austria.

1918 Hungary (Dec. 7, 1917) three years after conflict began in 1914 Armistice ending World War I is signed (Nov. 11, 1918).

1914 Panama Canal opens to traffic (Aug. 15).

1915 First long distance telephone service, between New York and San Francisco, is demonstrated (Jan. 25).

U.S. agrees to purchase Danish West Indies (Virgin Islands) for $25 million (treaty signed Aug. 14). Jeannette Rankin of Montana is the first woman elected to the U.S. House of Representatives (Nov. 7).

1917 Wilson's second inauguration (March 5). First regular airmail service begins, with one round trip a day between Washington, DC, and New York (May 15).

Worldwide influenza epidemic strikes; by 1920, nearly 20 million are dead. In U.S., 500,000 perish.

1919 League of Nations meets for the first time; U.S. is not represented (Jan. 13). Eighteenth Amendment to the Constitution is ratified, prohibiting the manufacture, sale, and transportation of liquor (Jan. 16). It is later repealed by the Twenty-First Amendment in 1933. Nineteenth Amendment to the Constitution is ratified, granting women the right to vote (Aug. 18). President Wilson suffers a stroke (Sept. 26). Treaty of Versailles, outlining terms for peace at the end of World War I, is rejected by the Senate (Nov. 19).

Warren G. Harding is inaugurated as the 29th president (March 4). He signs resolution declaring peace with Austria and Germany (July 2).

1923 President Harding dies suddenly (Aug. 2). He is succeeded by his vice president, Calvin Coolidge. Teapot Dome scandal breaks, as Senate launches an investigation into improper leasing of naval oil reserves during Harding administration (Oct.)

1925 Coolidge's second inauguration (March 4). Tennessee passes a law against the teaching of evolution in public schools (March 23), setting the stage for the Scopes Monkey Trial (July 10–25).

1927 Charles Lindbergh makes the first solo nonstop transatlantic flight in his plane The Spirit of St. Louis (May 20–21).

1929 Herbert Hoover is inaugurated as the 31st president (March 4). Stock market crash precipitates the Great Depression (Oct. 29).

1931 The Star-Spangled Banner is adopted as the national anthem (March 3).

1932 Hattie Wyatt Caraway of Arkansas is the first woman elected to the U.S. Senate, to fill a vacancy caused by the death of her husband (Jan. 12). She is re-elected in 1932 and 1938. Amelia Earhart completes first solo nonstop transatlantic flight by a woman (May 21).

1933 Twentieth Amendment to the Constitution, sometimes called the “Lame Duck Amendment,” is ratified, moving the president's inauguration date from March 4 to Jan. 20 (Jan. 23). Franklin Roosevelt is inaugurated as the 32nd president (March 4). New Deal recovery measures are enacted by Congress (March 9–June 16). Twenty-First Amendment to the Constitution is ratified, repealing Prohibition (Dec. 5).

1935 Works Progress Administration is established (April 8). Social Security Act is passed (Aug. 14). Bureau of Investigation (established 1908) becomes the Federal Bureau of Investigation under J. Edgar Hoover

1937 F. Roosevelt's second inauguration (Jan. 20).

1938 Fair Labor Standards Act is passed, setting the first minimum wage in the U.S. at 25 cents per hour (June 25).

1939 World War II: U.S. declares its neutrality in European conflict (Sept. 5, 1939). F. Roosevelt's third inauguration (Jan. 20, 1941). He is the first and only president elected to a third term. Japan attacks Hawaii, Guam, and the Philippines (Dec. 7, 1941). U.S. declares war on Japan (Dec. 8). Germany and Italy declare war on the United States; U.S. reciprocates by declaring war on both countries (Dec. 11). Allies invade North Africa (Oct.–Dec. 1942) and Italy (Sept.–Dec. 1943). Allies invade France on D-Day (June 6, 1944). F. Roosevelt's fourth inauguration (Jan. 20, 1945). President Roosevelt, Churchill, and Stalin meet at Yalta in the USSR to discuss postwar occupation of Germany (Feb. 4–11). President Roosevelt dies of a stroke (April 12) and is succeeded by his vice president, Harry Truman. Germany surrenders unconditionally (May 7). First atomic bomb is detonated at Alamogordo, N.M. (July 16). President Truman, Churchill, and Stalin meet at Potsdam, near Berlin, Germany, to demand Japan's unconditional surrender and to discuss plans for postwar Europe (July 17–Aug. 2). U.S. drops atomic bomb on Hiroshima, Japan (Aug. 6). U.S. drops atomic bomb on Nagasaki, Japan (Aug. 9). Japan agrees to unconditional surrender (Aug. 14). Japanese envoys sign surrender terms aboard the USS Missouri in Tokyo harbor (Sept. 2).

United Nations is established (Oct. 24).

1946 The Philippines, which had been ceded to the U.S. by Spain at the end of the Spanish-American War, becomes an independent republic (July 4).

1947 Presidential Succession Act is signed into law by President Truman (July 18). Central Intelligence Agency is established.

1948 Congress passes foreign aid bill including the Marshall Plan, which provides for European postwar recovery (April 2). Soviets begin blockade of Berlin in the first major crisis of the cold war (June 24). In response, U.S. and Great Britain begin airlift of food and fuel to West Berlin (June 26).

1949 Truman's second inauguration (Jan. 20). North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) is established (April 4). Soviets end blockade of Berlin (May 12), but airlift continues until Sept. 30.

Study Questions

The study questions are designed to challenge and expand the minds of the students. They investigate the mores of the period and draw parallels to the present. (co-writer Barbara Baker, trustees)

1. A geisha is a professional entertainer who works for a Japanese Tea House. Cio Cio San is a 15 year old geisha who has been contracted to Pinkerton as his wife. Cio Cio San understands that the contract is for 99 years and that Pinkerton can nullify the contract with a month’s notice. Why is Butterfly shamed when Pinkerton returns with an American wife and the Pinkertons want to take the baby back to the United States? What shame has Butterfly experienced? Is Butterfly a victim of the Japanese societal rules or is she a victim of her own naiveté?

2.  In Japan, a hara kiri death was considered honorable. Hara Kiri could be ordered by Emperor or an overlord and the act was honorable.  Butterfly’s father was ordered to commit hara kiri; he complied and maintained his personal honor. Butterfly chooses death to dishonor but does not have her husband’s or uncle’s permission to do so. Does her death save her honor or has she betrayed them by not seeking their permission? Or has her denunciation of her religion and heritage precluded her to the societal rights of the Japanese? Is her death honorable or is it meant to punish Pinkerton and Kate? Will Pinkerton be disturbed by her death? Will Kate?

3.  Why did Butterfly name her son Trouble? When does she plan to rename him Joy? Was Butterfly repudiated and ostracized by both the Japanese and American communities? Why? Does this happen today in America?

4.  Goro and Pinkerton have signed the marriage contract. When Bonzo appears to prevent the marriage, does Butterfly have a choice in the making of this marriage? Can she break the contract? When Pinkerton leaves, he breaks their contract. Would Butterfly’s honor have been saved if she married Prince Yamadori? If Butterfly has been truly dishonored would a Prince wish to wed soiled goods?

5.  Is Madama Butterfly an opera about betrayal or naiveté?

The Opera Connection

Opera brings all of the performing arts together in one incredible art form (vocal music, orchestral music, theater, dance, visual arts), but it also encompasses other areas of interest. Here are some suggestions for additional study that you can do on your own!

History/Political Science

American soldiers have been posted in other parts of the world throughout our nation’s history. What was the political relationship between America and Japan around 1900? How do you think Japanese citizens of that time period reacted to the presence of American soldiers? What influence would American visitors have on Japanese culture (and vice versa!)?

Art

How does Eastern art at the time of Madama Butterfly compare with Anglo/European art of the same period? How are the traditional Japanese prints, figurines and statues different from their western world counterparts? What influences did Japanese art and clothing have on American fashion?

Literature

Belasco’s play, Madama Butterfly, is mostly known today as the basis for Puccini’s opera, but in his day he was a prominent Broadway playwright. Which other American playwrights and authors were popular in the late nineteenth/early twentieth century? Have any of their works been turned into operas or musical theater works?

Architecture

Cio-Cio-San’s house consisted of lightweight, moveable walls that could be shifted to change the size and shape of the rooms. How does this style of architecture compare with American homes of the same period?

Religion

In the Japan of the early 1900’s, religion went hand in hand with one’s cultural identity. When Cio-Cio-San converted from Buddhaism to Christianity for the sake of her husband, she cut herself off not only from her family, but from her Japanese heritage. What beliefs make up the Buddhists faith? How do they compare with Christian beliefs?

Resources

Opera

http://waltm.net/mbutrfly.htm

http://www.columbia.edu/itc/music/NYCO/butterfly/synopsis.html

http://www.music-with-ease.com/puccini-butterfly-music.html

http://www.baltimoreopera.com/studyguide/synopsis_madama.asp

Composer

http://www.columbia.edu/itc/music/NYCO/butterfly/bio.html

http://www.culturevulture.net/Opera/Butterfly.htm

Librettist

http://www.columbia.edu/itc/music/NYCO/butterfly/librettists.html

Playwright

http://www.columbia.edu/itc/music/NYCO/butterfly/luther.html

History

http://www.classicalworks.com/his.pages/1901to1910.htm

http://www.infoplease.com/ipa/A0005245.html

http://www.infoplease.com/ipa/A0903596.html

Reference Books

Boyden, Matthew. Opera: The Rough Guide. London: Rough Guides Ltd., 1997. Note: This contains recommended recordings of many of the operas it describes.

DiGaetani, John Louis. An Invitation to the Opera. New York: Doubleday/Anchor Books, 1986.

Freeman, John W.  The Metropolitan Opera Stories of the Great Operas. New York:  W.W. Norton and Company, 1984. Note: This contains most of the popular operas that many American opera companies perform. There’s a Volume Two of this book, published in 1997, containing many twentieth century operas.

The Metropolitan Opera Encyclopedia:  A Comprehensive Guide to the World of Opera. Edited by David Hamilton. New York: Simon and Schuster, 1987.

The New Grove Book of Operas. Edited by Stanley Sadie. New York: St. Martin’s Press, 1996. Note: This a condensed version of the information found in the New Grove Dictionary of Opera list below.

The New Grove Dictionary of Opera. Edited by Stanley Sadie.  Volumes Three (Madama Butterfly, Puccini). London: Macmillan Reference Limited, 1997.

The New Kobbe’s Complete Opera Book. Edited by the Earl of Harewood and Anothony Peattie. New York: G.P. Putnam’s Sons, 1997 (11th edition).

Plotkin, Fred. Opera 101: A Complete Guide to Learning and Loving Opera. New York: Hyperion, 1994.

Pogue, David and Speck, Scott. Opera for Dummies. Foster City, CA: IDG Books Worldwide, Inc., 1997. Note: Yes, this is one of the “… for Dummies” books. It contains a compact disk containing 13 audio      tracks and 1 midi track (if you have the right software!).

Rudel, Anthony J. Tales From the Opera. New York: Simon and Shuster, 1985.

Rosenthal, Harold and Warrack, John. The Concise Oxford Dictionary of Opera. London: Oxford University Press, 1978.

Sardou, Victorien. La Tosca. (The Drama Behind the Opera). Edited and translated by W. Laird Kleine-Ahlbrandt. Lewiston, NY: The Edwin Mellen Press, 1990.

Simon, Henry W. 100 Great Operas and Their Stories. New York: Doubleday/Anchor Books, 1957.

Recordings

Puccini, Giacomo. Madama Butterfly. Sony Classical, 1949 (remastered from Metropolitan Opera production recording).  Eleanor Steber (Butterfly), Richard Tucker (Pinkerton), Jean Madeira,           (Suzuki), Giuseppe Valdengo (Sharpless). Conducted by Max Rudolf with the Metropolitan Orchestra and Chorus.

Puccini, Giacomo. Madama Butterfly. Deutsche Grammophon, 1988.  Mirella Freni (Butterfly), Jose Carreras (Pinkerton), Teresa Bergonza (Suzuki), Juan Pons (Sharpless). Conducted by Giuseppe Sinopoli with the Philharmonia Orchestra and Ambrosian Opera Chorus.

Puccini, Giacomo. Madama Butterfly. London, 19_. Mirella Freni (Butterfly), Luciano Pavarotti (Pinkerton), Christa Ludwig (Suzuki), Robert Kerns (Sharpless). Conducted by Giuseppe Sinopoli with the Philharmonia Orchestra and Ambrosian Opera Chorus.

Puccini, Giacomo. Madama Butterfly. EMI, 1960. Victoria de los Angeles (Butterfly), Jussi Bjorling (Pinkerton), Miriam Pirazzini (Suzuki), Mario Sereni (Sharpless). Conducted by Gabriele Santini       with the orchestra and chorus of the Teatro dell’Opera di Roma.