Met Opera: Madama Butterfly

The Live in HD season concludes with Madama Butterfly. Puccini’s devastating opera of unrequited love between a young Japanese girl and an American naval officer is one of the world’s most popular (and tragic) operas.

Soprano Asmik Grigorian makes her highly anticipated Met debut as Cio-Cio-San, with acclaimed maestro Xian Zhang conducting tenor Jonathan Tetelman as the callous American sailor Pinkerton, mezzo-soprano Elizabeth DeShong as the steadfast maid Suzuki, and baritone Lucas Meachem as the American consul Sharpless.

The timeless score includes a number of melodies familiar to opera lovers and newcomers alike, including the soaring soprano aria “Un bel dì” and the evocative Humming Chorus.

The Met’s beloved production by Academy Award–winning film director Anthony Minghella returns, using traditional Bunraku puppetry and Japanese theatrical techniques to beautifully tell the story, which is set in the port city of Nagasaki at the turn of the 20th century.