Madame Butterfly
Image: Hiroshi Yoshida - Kumoi-Zakura (Kumoi Cherry Trees), 1926
The Canadian Opera Company’s (COC) new production of Puccini’s famous Madame Butterfly was the highlight of the opera season thus far.
The singer castings were solid; all sang well, but some shined brighter than others. Cio-Cio San/Butterfly, sung by Eri Nakamura was strong and beautiful. Nakamura’s acting was expressive and emotive, from the top of the show with her emotional telling of becoming a geisha to support herself, to the desperate search for answers from Sharpless about Pinkerton’s return. She made a convincing case all opera long. Her take on Un bel di, vedremo (“One fine day we'll see”), was heartfelt and moving. The only comment one could make was the moment allowed for un poco rubato, to let her really carry the line and draw all the emotion that the aria had to offer. The tempo from conductor Wilson kept the momentum moving, however, being the show stoper aria that everyone waited for, it deserved more of a moment to shine. But that is the only comment to be made about Nakamura’s performance. She shined in all aspects, from heart breaking to humorous, she did wonderfully.
Butterfly’s companion throughout the whole opera, Suzuki, played by Hyona Kim, shared in performance level with Nakamura. She sang strong and beautifully, and along with Nakamura, were both brilliant in their command of chest voice. They were exemplars of mastery of the soprano low range, for when singing the recitative-like passages they were both rich and full, beautiful while emphasizing exposition.
Pinkerton was sung skillfully by tenor Kang Wang, and carried themself well in the style of selfish love interest. Their voice was strong and skillful, able to keep up with the orchestra. Their counterpart Goro the Marriage Broker, had a more difficult time with this. Goro, played by Julius Ahn, had wonderful phrasing, tone, and characterization, but I often found them having trouble singing out when the orchestra would crescendo. Their talent is clear, but balance was an issue.
Last but not least, as they might have been our favourite voice on stage, was Consul Sharpless, played by Michael Sumel who made their COC main-stage debut. They played their role wonderfully, portraying a sense of duty as a foreign dignitary, with the voice to match. Strong, rich, commanding, Sumel’s voice is one we hope to hear again and again on the COC stage.
This production of the COC might be the best of the season so far. From the balance of staging and production, to wonderful artistry from all the musicians, this run of Puccini’s Madame Butterfly set the bar for future Butterfly productions.