Switzerland Puccini, Madame Butterfly: Soloists, Refrain and Orchestra of Zurich Opera / Evan Rogister (conductor). Zurich, 3.1.2026. (AL-L)
This revival of Ted Huffman’s 2017 manufacturing (overview right here) continues to exhibit the virtues of theatrical restraint. The manufacturing opens with a naked stage framed by three partitions, a minimalist method that articulates the story effectively. That is less-is-more staging at its greatest, permitting the main focus to stay squarely on the drama unfolding earlier than us.
Personenregie proved equally efficient. Small however telling particulars spoke volumes: the understanding glances exchanged between Pinkerton and Sharpless after they point out that Butterfly is fifteen years previous, or the refined shifts in lighting that mark pivotal moments within the narrative. These touches exhibit a director’s understanding that suggestion usually works extra powerfully than assertion.
One small musical misjudgment marred the in any other case cautious staging. Within the elegant trio ‘Io so che alle sue pene’, Pinkerton was positioned in the back of the stage, creating an unlucky imbalance among the many three singers and diminishing what must be one of many opera’s most profound moments.
The manufacturing departs from custom on the ending, the place Cio-Cio-San takes her life not alone however within the presence of Pinkerton and Sharpless, the latter shielding her son’s eyes from the tragedy. This selection provides a layer of complicity to the male characters’ guilt that resonates powerfully.
Evan Rogister’s conducting proved well-matched to the manufacturing’s aesthetic. His exact, considerably brisk method introduced trendy sensibility to Puccini’s rating. Whereas a contact extra tenderness might need been welcome in sure passages, the interpretation remained constantly efficient. By night’s finish, the string part confirmed indicators of fatigue, with intonation wavering in just a few locations, although not sufficient to noticeably mar the general impression.
Elena Guseva commanded the second act with dramatic depth and vocal energy. Her efficiency illustrated a typical problem with this position: conveying each the fifteen-year-old woman of Act I and the mature, determined lady of Act II requires distinctive performing expertise. Whereas Guseva’s first act was much less absolutely realized, her sturdy center register and largely safe excessive notes carried the night. Among the highest notes may have been broader and extra confidently delivered, however the total impact remained compelling.
Stefan Pop introduced real ringing excessive notes with important energy to Pinkerton. His voice possesses the qualities that mark him as a future Otello – although one hopes he’ll resist that repertoire for some years but. For now, he must develop extra assorted tonal colors when singing at lower than full voice, in order to seek out related tenorial tones in quieter passages.
Making his Zurich debut, Davide Luciano lower a commanding determine as Sharpless. His sturdy projection, clear diction, and musical phrasing demonstrated why this position fits him so effectively. The smaller roles have been capably dealt with by common members of the corporate. The refrain, although considerably unsure when coming into from the wings at first, discovered surer footing because the efficiency progressed.
Within the moderately-sized Zurich Opera Home singers needn’t battle with an outsized orchestra, and the bodily proximity of stage and viewers creates real theatrical intimacy. Even with its small imperfections, this Madama Butterfly achieved the burden and dimension that Puccini’s rating calls for. The rapt silence of the viewers and the enthusiastic ovation that adopted testified to a efficiency that honoured each the work and the performers.
Antoine Lévy-Leboyer
Featured Picture: Zurich Opera’s Madama Butterfly (earlier efficiency) © Toni Suter
Solid:
Cio-Cio-San – Elena Guseva
Suzuki – Siena Licht Miller
Pinkerton – Stefan Pop
Sharpless – Davide Luciano
Goro – Martin Zysset
Uncle Bonze – Stanislav Vorobyov
Kate Pinkerton – Annemarie Woods
Prince Yamadori/Registrar – Steffan Lloyd Owen
Imperial Commissioner – Lobel Barun
Manufacturing:
Director – Ted Huffman
Set – Michael Levine
Costumes – Annemarie Woods
Lighting – Franck Evin
Refrain grasp – Ernst Raffelsberger
