BUTTERFLY REDUX

 

Sarah Benzinger, Alex Wang, Chris Drago Fistonich, Kimberly Milburn, Yulin Wang, Yeawon Jun

We enjoyed Amore Opera's production of Puccini's Madama Butterfly so much that we returned to see it with a different cast. Taking seats on the front row made the experience a bit less satisfying musically but more satisfying dramatically, since we were able to see more dramatic details, bringing us even more into the story. 

One might call these details insignificant but we liked noticing household servants spying on the newlyweds and the reactions of the wedding guests. We noticed an elderly guest being carefully led down the hill by a younger woman. There were many more details of Tami Swarz' astute direction, among which appeared to be elements of Japanese theater, particularly the moon and stars appearing as actors bearing masks during Cio-Cio-San's nightlong vigil, with a sun mask announcing daybreak.

However, it was the change of singers that we came to hear. Tenorrific Yulin Wang made a splendid Pinkerton with his strong instrument cutting right through the orchestration. There was something interesting about his characterization as well. One got the impression that his Act I behavior--jingoistic and sexist--was not necessarily a form of narcissism but rather demonstrated his youthful unquestioning acceptance of distorted cultural values. More significantly, his behavior in Act III was indeed cowardly but also seemed truly repentant. His "Ah, sono vil" was not performative as was last night's tenor's performance. It left us with the feeling that he has learned and grown from the tragedy created by his behavior.

Cio-Cio-San was beautifully sung by soprano Yeawon Jun and her petite frame next to Mr. Wang's grandeur reinforced the relative status of their relationship. Ms. Jun's vocal performance left nothing to be desired and we cannot explain why it felt less moving. Let us just attribute it to the fact that we shed all our tears the prior night.

The Sharpless of baritone Chris Drago Fistonich impressed us far more than the prior night's Sharpless who seemed cold and distant. We like the way Mr. Fistonich seemed more caring and concerned, whilst still maintaining his official position. He was appropriately angry at Pinkerton for creating such a mess!

Kate Pinkerton was played by Sarah Benzinger whose portrayal was not as warm and sympathetic as the prior night's Kate.  One wondered how successful would be her motherly skills toward the child Sorrow. This is what makes repeated nights of seeing different casts a worthwhile goal. There is no right or wrong way to play a character and each tiny gesture can affect the way one feels about the story.

Kimberly Milburn's Suzuki made it clear that she knew what Cio-Cio-San was going to do and how powerless she felt to stop the inevitable hara-kiri.

Alex Wang made a darling Sorrow and size wise looked younger than the prior night's Sorrow which worked to advantage.

Xavier Yunxuan Zhu was appropriately slimy as Goro and we were happy to see Ting-Yi Chen again as an elegant Prince Yamadori who graciously accepted Butterfly's refusal of his marriage proposal and did it with pleasantly resonant low tones. We were so glad that the character was not presented as a buffoon. Butterfly does not reject him because he is a fool. She rejects him because she is holding out hope for Pinkerton.

All in all, we enjoyed the performance and were never bored. We would happily see the third cast if we had the time.

© meche kroop

POVERA BUTTERFLY!

 Valeria Chibis, Charles Gray, Emi Noguchi, Tomoko Nago, Maestro Elizabeth Hastings, 

Nikhil Krishna, and Jihye Seo

It took several hours from the curtain call for us to compose ourself sufficiently to summarize our deeply felt experience with Amore Opera's production of Puccini's popular masterpiece Madama Butterfly. There were two aspects of the production that produced these intense feelings and we will deal with them in turn.

To begin with, soprano Jihye Seo turned in a performance that went straight to the heart. There was not a single vocal flaw to distract us from her dramatically valid performance. With beauty of tone, accuracy of phrasing, and excellent Italian, Ms. Seo caught nuances of Cio-Cio-San's journey that was no less challenging than Violetta's journey in Verdi's La Traviata.

She begins her journey as a naïve 15 year-old child with more stars in her eyes than there are in the sky on the night of her honeymoon. As a child she shows her few dear possessions to the older man to whom she has pledged her love.  She is innocent to the ways of the world and the cultural differences between herself and the transient American naval officer. She is all too willing to cut herself off from her family and her Buddhist faith. 

In the next act, we see from her meeting with Sharpless, the United States Consul at Nagasaki (Charles Gray), that she knows little of the ways of the world and is so immersed in denial of reality that the kindly Consul just gives up. Ms. Seo does show us a Cio-Cio San who has kept her faith in Pinkerton's return and has also made efforts to westernize herself.   Her "Un bel di vedremo" did not fail to move us with vocal beauty and dramatic honesty.  Poor Suzuki (Tomoko Nago) stands by Butterfly, seemingly more aware of reality but unwilling to confront her. The smarmy Goro (Mark Martinez) is only interested in how he can profit from the situation. 

By the time she is confronted with indisputable evidence of her abandonment, the childlike innocence drops away and Ms. Seo gives us a strong young woman who sees the future and rejects the two unacceptable options. Marriage to a wealthy oft-divorced Prince Yamadori (a most effective Ting-Yi Chen, who also made a fine angry Bonzu) or eking out a living to support her son without familial support seem equally unacceptable. With true grit and undeniable purpose she chooses the one option that her culture offers, that of suicide. Her fraught encounter with Kate, Pinkerton's new wife, offers her some relief that her beloved son will be cared for.  

So dramatically accurate and emotionally moving was Ms. Seo's performance that we had tears rolling down our face from Act II until the powerful ending.  We might add that Nikhil Krishna's Pinkerton accurately represented the attitude of a narcissist. It is not just the carelessness of colonialism but a true lack of compassion. Mr. Krishna's performance grew from Act I to Act III although the character of Pinkerton did not. He is simply a selfish child abuser whose final aria "Ah, son vil" is histrionic and performative. He will get back on his ship and will have forgotten this youthful episode. We secretly hoped that Kate (a lovely Valeria Chibis) will make his life miserable and devote herself to helping young Sorrow (Emi Noguchi) deal with the stress of growing up in 19th century America as a mixed race child.

As you may have guessed, Dear Reader, we were quite immersed in the story and now we will tell you the cause. It was the astute direction of Tami Swartz, whose Japanese background and diligent scholarship made the story more real, more impactful, and ultimately more satisfying. Some opera goers may think of Puccini's masterpiece as a love story but we have always seen it as a story of rampant colonialism and narcissistic child abuse. We were glad that Ms. Swartz sees it the same way. This production dates back about two decades when she did the research to make the production more authentic, tweaked the libretto, and starred as Cio-Cio San with her husband Adam Klein as Pinkerton for Harrisburg Opera.

Although we generally disapprove of changes to the classics, in this case the tweaking actually improved upon the original with a few minor changes and additions to the Illica/Giacosa libretto that enhanced the storytelling. The awkward playing space did not stand in the way of Ms. Swarz' directorial creativity. Even the aisles were put into service for the parade of relatives coming to the wedding. Other people in the audience seemed as enthralled as we were as evidenced by conversations in the lobby and in the ladies room. A standing ovation confirmed our impression.

Musical values were fine with Maestro Elizabeth Hastings in firm control of the orchestra. Costumes by Sarah Pearson seemed accurate to the time period which had been pushed back to mid 19th century for reasons of historical accuracy.

We cannot end without noting that the excellent cast deserved a more suitable playing space with the orchestra in a pit. Unfortunately, affordable spaces like that in Manhattan are as scarce as proverbial hen's teeth. These young singers occasionally had difficulty cutting through the dense orchestration, with the exception of Ms. Seo, whose soprano rose right above the orchestra. Lighting was also a problem with the entire space brightly lit, making the excellent titles rather difficult to read. Minor quibbles aside, it was a most worthwhile evening, one we will not soon forget. Actually we plan to attend another performance to see how things work with a different cast, so watch for an addendum.

© meche kroop

POVERA BUTTERFLY

Ana Maria Martinez and Joshua Guerrero in the final scene of Madama Butterfly at the Santa Fe Opera
(photo by Ken Howard for Santa Fe Opera)

We have been known to get a bit moist in the eye at the opera, but the last time we were reduced to bawling like a baby was in 2010 when Santa Fe Opera mounted Lee Blakeley's production  of Madama Butterfly. The tall and handsome tenor Brandon Jovanovich towered over the tiny soprano Kelly Kaduce, emphasizing the total imbalance of power in this exploitative relationship between an arrogant American naval lieutenant and an innocent and deluded 15-year-old Japanese geisha. Last night we saw a revival of this production, astutely directed by Matthew Ozawa and we completely "lost it".

With eight years of additional opera going experience, we realized that it was not only the terrific performances that produced such grief but Puccini's music, so affectingly played by the Santa Fe Orchestra under the baton of Maestro John Fiore. The program indicates that we are seeing the Brescia version but we thought we were hearing Puccini's original 1904 version, the La Scala premiere of which was considered so unsuccessful that Puccini revised the opera in many respects. Indeed, there are five iterations extant, but this one is, in our opinion, the most powerful.

Librettists Luigi Illica and Giuseppe Giacosa pulled no punches in their depiction of an arrogant sexist American lieutenant, here performed by tenor Joshua Guerrero. He made his character so loathsome that he was booed at the curtain call. There was no doubt that it was the character being booed, and not the performance, which was marked by fine Italianate phrasing and topnotch acting. His "Addio, fiorito asil" was gorgeously sung; if it was meant to evoke sympathy for his remorse, it failed. This character is totally involved with himself and his own feelings with little concern for his abandoned bride.

The role of Cio-Cio-San was magnificently performed by soprano Ana Maria Martinez whose "Un bel di vedremo" deserved all the applause it received. Ms. Martinez is not all that shorter than Mr. Guerrero; nonetheless, her acting achieved the same result as in the benchmark performance that affected us so greatly eight years ago. Some interesting directorial touches evoked the thought that Butterfly's suicide not only represented "death with honor" but also could be perceived as an act of anger, what with all the violently overturned chairs. This amounts to a Westernized psychoanalytic view of suicide. 

Aside from the strength of the depiction of the characters, what makes this version so powerful is the elimination of the intermission between Act II and Act III. Instead, the audience has the opportunity to join Butterfly in the overnight vigil as she waits for Pinkerton. The melancholy "Humming Chorus" sets the stage for our emotional devastation. The feeling of dread mounted in our chest and we felt ourself trembling. The confrontation between Butterfly and the new Mrs. Pinkerton, ably enacted by mezzo-soprano Hannah Hagerty, added to the dread. The sight of little Trouble pointing his dagger at Pinkerton next to the body of his dead mother was one of the most chilling sights we have seen at the opera. His future seems like one more aspect of the tragedy.

Baritone Nicholas Pallesen had the good fortune to portray the wise and kindly U.S. Consul Sharpless. His voice was splendid and his dramatic portrayal was filled with appropriate gesture. The poor man was unable to convince Pinkerton to behave better; nor was he able to reason with Butterfly. We completely believed him in the role.

The other realist of the evening was Suzuki, Butterfly's servant, performed to perfection by the excellent mezzo-soprano Megan Marino. Suzuki knows the score but cannot get Butterfly to face reality. Her loyalty is above reproach and she endures a bit of abuse from the angry Butterfly.

Another powerful performance was that of the angry Bonze, realized by bass Soloman Howard who commanded the stage. Tenor Matthew DiBattista made a very slimy Goro. Baritone Kenneth Stavert played the role of Prince Yamadori without the customary excess of foolishness; this was a fine idea because it emphasized the idea that Butterfly's rejection was based upon her delusion that Pinkerton would return and resume their marriage, not on the idea that Yamadori was a poor choice.

We were delighted to see other Apprentice Singers onstage. Bass-baritone Erik van Heyningen made an excellent Imperial Commissioner, and bass Colin Ramsey was equally fine as the Registrar, both of whom officiated at the marriage. 

Maestro Fiore's conducting presented the music we know and love, along with some music that had been cut when Puccini revised the opera. Puccini successfully combined lyrical Western melodies with Asian folks songs. The chorus, under the direction of Susanne Sheston, sang beautifully and intelligibly, even when offstage.

The set design by Jean-Marc Puissant gave us every possible Japanese signifier including cherry blossoms, lanterns, and shoji panels for Butterfly's home. During the overture, the house itself took shape as panels were carried on and installed. The audience could readily grasp the theme of impermanence. We noticed that the interval of three years was marked by some modernization by way of utility poles with electrical lines. The 20th c. had arrived.

We always have a small quibble and here it has to do with the lighting design of Rick Fisher who missed the chance to show the dawn of which Suzuki sings. The sky never brightened. But the street lights did turn off.

Brigitte Reiffenstuel's costume design was traditional.

This is the Madama Butterfly that we will remember and cherish.  We hope we will not have to wait another eight years to see it again.

(c) meche kroop

MOUNTING A BUTTERFLY

Brandie Sutton and Hyona Kim (photo by Jen Joyce Davis)

In Puccini's hit opera Madama Butterfly, the eponymous tragic heroine expresses her fears to the American naval lieutenant that in the USA, butterflies are caught and pinned.  Lieutenant Pinkerton assures her that is to prevent them from flying away. He doesn't tell her that they die.

For us, this story of a 15-year-old geisha, high born but fallen on hard times, is a story of rampant colonialism and child abuse.  It is a love story only in the eyes of "povera Butterfly" who is deluded by wishful thinking; she believes that Pinkerton really loves her when he has only purchased her services along with the house in Nagasaki, an arrangement that favors only him and perhaps Goro, the marriage broker who is nothing more than a pimp.

We have no quarrel with those who see it in a different light but we stand by our opinion. Indeed, Puccini himself was obliged to modify the original 1904 La Scala version which, we believe, having seen it many years ago, was too strong for the public to accept. Conventional wisdom suggests that the first version was unpopular because of inadequate rehearsal but we are left wondering. Puccini wrote four more versions until he was satisfied. Or until the public was satisfied.

Last night, we heard a performance of the opera by a superb cast of young artists--the culmination of six weeks of intense study in Prelude to Performance, Martina Arroyo's decade-long program devoted to developing the talents of those fortunate enough to be accepted. Master classes and coaching are provided in all areas of performance from movement to language to character creation.

We believe it is Ms. Arroyo's emphasis on the latter which enabled us to see artists in non-traditional casting and to forget the inconsistencies. Try to imagine an American naval officer of the early 20th c. and the American consul both portrayed by Asians! Imagine a Caucasian Prince Yamadori!  An Afro-American Butterfly! (Of course, Ms. Arroyo accomplished that feat years ago.)

The entire affair somehow worked, thanks not only to the conviction of the cast members but to the superb direction of Gina Lapinski who provided concrete motivation for each action of each character. Stereotypes were avoided--i.e. Prince Yamadori was anything but the clown he is usually portrayed as. There were no inebriated relatives celebrating the wedding but a chorus of beautiful maidens in kimonos the colors of flowers, raising their voices in delicious harmony, directed by the excellent Noby Ushida. The chorus was heard again in the "humming chorus" at the end of Act II and we have never heard it performed better.

Typical of Prelude to Performance productions, the set was simple but effective--shoji screens suggesting the hilltop house, some flowers, and some panels suspended from on high. Meganne George's set design was significantly enhanced by the evocative lighting by Joshua Rose. In the final scene of hara-kiri, the colors disappear into chiaroscuro with the desperate act taking place behind the screen in silhouette--surprisingly more chilling than the usual "out there" bloody deed.

The singing was excellent for the most part.  Not only did Brandie Sutton grow in stature as the story progressed but her voice bloomed into great beauty. In Act II, her"Un bel di" left the audience astonished with a chorus of "bravas" that might have been heard from Lexington Ave. to Park Ave.

One could not have imagined a better Suzuki than Hyona Kim whose rich mezzo has impressed us on several prior occasions. Every movement, every reaction, every gesture and facial expression revealed depths of character in a fresh manner.

Baritone Young Kwang Yoo made an effective U.S. Consul Sharpless whose thankless duty as the voice of reason goes unheard. But his own voice was very much heard and a pleasure to hear.

Yet another baritone left us wanting a second hearing. Alexander Boyd was regal as Prince Yamadori, the much married aristocrat who would like to add Cio-Cio San to his list. We enjoyed his regal bearing and fine voice, relieved that we were not subject to so-called comic relief.

In the role of Goro, tenor Alexander Lee created a character not a caricature. It was clear that he was an opportunist who lost no opportunity to ingratiate himself. He has a fine instrument and a lovely legato, filling each vowel to its proper metric value.

As The Bonze, Hangzhi Yao, a bass-baritone, impressed us with his onstage authority and deep rich voice. Lindsay Mecher in the small role of Kate Pinkerton appeared suitably uncomfortable. We hoped that she would make a good mother to little Dolore (the adorable Akari Wientzen) and spitefully wanted her to make her husband miserable for the rest of his life!

Tenor Taehwan Ku  had the thankless role of Pinkerton--the entitled exploiter, the child abuser. At the end of Act III, when he sang "Addio, fiorito asil" we could not bring ourselves to pity him. He's a coward who makes a mess and expects other people to clean up after him and cries crocodile tears. The fact that we took the story so seriously is just further evidence of the artists' skill in portraying John Luther Long's tragic story, so beautifully transformed into the libretto by Luigi Illica and Giuseppe Giacosa.

Should you be inspired to share our intense involvement in this excellent production, there will be one more performance Saturday night at the Kaye Playhouse of Hunter College.  Should you be inspired to give financial assistance to the Martina Arroyo Foundation and contribute to the development of these young artists, please keep in mind that it is a rare program that not only provides the six-week training gratis, but also provides stipends for the young artists.  Now that's what we call generosity!

(c) meche kroop

MORE GRIST

Brandie Sutton and Reri Grist 

Marisan Corsino and Reri Grist

Renowned soprano and esteemed teacher Reri Grist was introduced by Martina Arroyo as a friend of fifty years duration, an announcement that evoked torrents of applause from the audience-- eager to hear the divine Ms. Grist coach young singers--part of the Prelude to Performance program.

We have previously noted that each master teacher seems to focus on one thing above all others and Ms. Grist's focus was largely on a forward sound placement. Each of the four students in her master class benefited by bringing the voice up and forward and out of the throat. This was particularly valuable in descending vocal lines.

If you love Puccini's Madama Butterfly as much as we do, you will not want to miss soprano Brandie Sutton's performance as Cio-Cio San on July 9th and 11th at Hunter College. Her glorious instrument soared in the final act aria "Che tua madre" and needed only a few hints from Ms. Grist--hints that made all the difference. In this case, Ms. Grist asked Ms. Sutton to use the initial consonant to help project the "ah" sound into the mask, achieving a rounder sound. A gentle boost from the diaphragm was also helpful.

Donizetti's Fille du Regiment will be performed on July 10th and 12th (matinée) and soprano Claire Coolen will be covering the role of Marie.  We never wish ill on a performer but if Ms. Coolen manages to sing one of the performances we would be thrilled to hear her. She sang "Chacun le sait" with panache and spunk and brilliant tone.  She was coached to take her time between phrases. 

Tenor Jon Jurgens gave full voice to "Addio fiorito asil", Lt. Pinkerton's final act aria from Madama Butterfly, a role he is covering.  He was coached to "cool it" in Ms. Grist's well-chosen phrase--to save his voice and not push.  Our own thoughts were along the same lines. We wanted him to start more gently and build to a climax when he realizes how vilely he has behaved toward Butterfly. Using his diaphragm helped him to get up and out of his throat.

Mezzo-soprano Marisan Corsino, the Suzuki cover, sang "Una voce poco fa" from Rossini's Il barbiere di Siviglia. At first, she delivered it to the audience and Ms. Grist coached her to pretend she was singing it to her image in the mirror, which made a world of difference. Moving around the stage also helped to eliminate the presentational quality. Another great suggestion was to achieve more variety when a phrase is repeated several times. A bit of playfulness with the rhythm added still more to the performance.

Soprano Maria Brea, who is cast as Marie on July 10th and 12th sang "Par le rang et par l'opulence" from Act II of Fille du Regiment. Ms. Grist worked with her on character interpretation and when the aria was performed with purity and simplicity it became not just a beautiful tone but a meaningful portrayal.

Tenor Alexander Wook Lee, who will be singing Goro in Madama Butterfly, did not need any help in the acting department. He sang Beppe's serenade (as Arlecchino) to Nedda (as Columbina) from Leoncavallo's Pagliacci, with an abundance of humor and personality. He received good coaching from Ms. Grist on increasing his support on the high notes, getting the song up and out of his throat. The tips on vowel modification were also helpful.

Ms. Grist taught with warmth, generosity, and humor. Accompanist Ed Bak did the usual fine job of supporting each singer. We noticed he has a special affinity for Puccini.

The prolonged period of individualized and group coaching ensures that the performances of these two beloved operas are guaranteed to delight the audience as they do every summer. We urge you to get your tickets quickly before they are all gone.

(c) meche kroop

POVERA BUTTERFLY

Even as New York City Opera is shrinking in its presence in the opera scene, so smaller companies are exhibiting a greater one.  Among the many small companies we have always enjoyed is the Chelsea Opera founded by Lynne Hayden-Finlay and Leonarda Priore. The former served as director of the current production of Madama Butterfly and co-producer along with Ms. Priore.  For the most part we found the direction to be exemplary, making good use of the small "stage" of St. Peter's Church in Chelsea and giving characters stage business that was apt but never fussy or distracting.  We were, however, puzzled by Cio-Cio San's final disembowelment when her initial attempt at ritual suicide was the more culturally correct slashing of the carotid artery.  The simple set achieved by Ms. Priore served well and was much enhanced by Michael Megliola's lighting design.

Maestro Carmine Aufiero can always be counted on; he led the Chelsea Opera Chamber Orchestra in a sensitive reading of Puccini's lavish score, here reduced by Richard Balcombe and played by 15 fine musicians in the pit and one very versatile keyboardist named Cory Battey who was obliged to provide the percussion and harp sounds.

Among the singers, the two whose voices fell the loveliest onto our ears were tenor Aaron Blankfield who portrayed Goro, the marriage broker and the lovely Yajie Chen who exhibited a true mezzo sound throughout her vocal range in the role of Suzuki.  Unlike the leads, we experienced her as living the part and not "acting".  Of course, it helps a great deal that she is Asian.  We are not saying that there haven't been some great Caucasian performers portraying Asian people--just that it was not necessary to suspend disbelief.  It WAS necessary to do just that in the pairing of soprano Christina Rohm as Cio-Cio San and tenor Daniel Rodriguez as Lt. Pinkerton.  Both appeared to be working rather hard at singing and acting but there was a notable absence of chemistry between them.  Ms. Rohm has some lovely squillo at the top, singing the "Un bel di" quite well, but was occasionally hard to hear.  The absence of surtitles made us wish for better diction.

Lynn Abeles sang the role of Kate Pinkerton and baritone Justin Ryan was the much put-upon U.S. Consul.  Cio-Cio San's child was played by a very winsome Kevin Wielczyk.

We understand that next year's season will include two contemporary operas and are pleased to note that the Chelsea Opera has grown to embrace a most enthusiastic audience.  We wish them all the best.

(c) meche kroop