Madama Butterfly

Madama Butterfly Madama Butterfly When asked to go view a live performance there were no doubts in my mind that I would go see Giacomo Puccini's Madama Butterfly. The story of Cio-cio-san, the eternally faithful heroine, is one of the most wrenching and well known in all of opera. A young geisha is so blinded by hope for a better life that she does not see the truth about the man she loves until it is far too late. There is more to this story than we often see. The culture conflict between the East and West is just beneath the surface. In 1900, Japan was discovering the West, both the arrogance and the promise, for the first time. During that time, hundreds of Japanese women married American servicemen and immigrated to America. Countless others suffered the cruel fate of Madama Butterfly.Act one takes place in Japan in the early twentieth century.Pinkerton Academy, Derry, N.H.