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What distinguishes this excellent production of Puccini's Madama Butterfly from others is its intensely Japanese flavor. La Scala engaged a Japanese director, and he adopted many conventions of Japanese theater, including the dark-clad stagehands, whom the audience is supposed to not notice, a Zen-style rock garden rather than the profusion of blossoms usually seen, and the use of red fabrics (ribbon and rug) to symbolize the blood in the suicide scene. The singing and acting often has a Japanese restraint (unexpected but not unwelcome in an Italian opera house). The Japanese Cio-Cio-San (Hayashi Yasuko) and Korean Suzuki (Hack-Nam Kim) give a special authenticity to the casting. An Italian singer, Ernesto Gavazzi, has the role of the slimy marriage broker, Goro, but this works quite well because Goro has adopted Western mannerisms. George Dvorsky is a convincing Pinkerton, Giorgio Zancanaro is a sympathetic Sharpless, and the singing is good throughout, though seldom electrifying. --Joe McLellan
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