I feel the same way with Madama Butterfly as I do Manon Lescaut, not always plausible but very touching story and some of Puccini's most gorgeous music. I do consider Tosca and La Boheme superior operas though I still love it very much. This production does have redeeming qualities but on the whole it is just outrageous. I consider the La Scala, Kabaivanska, Met, Anna Moffo and Ponnelle's versions much better.
The best asset is easily the title performance of Daniela Dessi. Despite her ridiculous costume, this is a very moving and thought-provoking performance, with nuances in the first act duet and innocence in the encounter with Sharpless. Her vibrato is a slight nuisance at first, but the spinto tone needed for the final scene- which is heart-wrenching- and the girlish timbre for her more innocent scenes settle and manage to be very endearing and believable. Apart from some ponderous tempos, another plus is Placido Domingo's conducting. Domingo is no stranger to Madama Butterfly, he is an excellent Pinkerton both on record and in Ponnelle's film, here he takes on the role of the conductor, and his spot-on musicality and sensitivity really adds to the poignancy of the music.
As for the supporting cast they are uneven. The best are Rossana Rinaldi's sympathetic Suzuki and Luca Caslin's oily Goro. However, while both improve later on, both Fabio Armiliato and Juan Pons are disappointing in roles that should suit them to the core. Armiliato's acting is not bad, he blends wonderfully with Dessi in the Act 1 duet, it is quite subtle and his despair in the final act does feel genuine. However, his voice has seen better days, in alternative to the ring and sheen he had with his Cavaradossi, Dick Johnson and Radames his tone is strained and dry. Pons does have his moments, when he reads the letter to Butterfly from Pinkerton he is very soft and caring. On the other hand, his vibrato here is disturbing and he blusters too much. I didn't care for Marco Camastra and Riccardo Zanellato, who both sing even for their characters unattractively.
In regard to the rest of the musical values, the orchestral playing does justice to the beautiful score, with nuanced phrasing, good textural balance and lush overall sound. The chorus look ridiculous and look uncomfortable, but manage to sing beautifully. The sound is decent. The video directing however is incredibly amateurish and distracting, not since the 2003 Tannhauser have I seen video directing this bad, though not as terrible as that production. It doesn't focus enough on the drama and the camera shots are rushed-looking and rather rudimentary in technique. The worst asset about the video directing though was that far too much time is spent on Domingo, the biggest offender being Un Bel Di Vedremo which doesn't focus on any of the stage drama but on him.
But this is nothing compared to the production values and staging. The costumes right from Butterfly in uncomfortable veils and collars, Suzuki dressed like a moth to Sharpless like a beetle and Pinkerton in a costume that I didn't have a clue as to what it was meant to be look terrible. The settings look like a barren desert, which may have worked for Manon Lescaut, but not here. In short, it jars completely with the libretto, I'm all for concept productions but not like this. The staging is mostly static and emotionless, so the final scene has no emotional impact whatsoever. The demented ballet steps in the Humming chorus were not needed.
Overall, loved Dessi and Domingo's conducting, but the video directing is wretched, the rest of the cast is uneven and the production values and staging look horrible and jars with the very specific libretto. One of the worst productions of Puccini's operas I've seen along with the Chemmitz Manon Lescaut and the Jose Cura Tosca, and possibly one of my least favourites ever. 3/10 Bethany Cox
The best asset is easily the title performance of Daniela Dessi. Despite her ridiculous costume, this is a very moving and thought-provoking performance, with nuances in the first act duet and innocence in the encounter with Sharpless. Her vibrato is a slight nuisance at first, but the spinto tone needed for the final scene- which is heart-wrenching- and the girlish timbre for her more innocent scenes settle and manage to be very endearing and believable. Apart from some ponderous tempos, another plus is Placido Domingo's conducting. Domingo is no stranger to Madama Butterfly, he is an excellent Pinkerton both on record and in Ponnelle's film, here he takes on the role of the conductor, and his spot-on musicality and sensitivity really adds to the poignancy of the music.
As for the supporting cast they are uneven. The best are Rossana Rinaldi's sympathetic Suzuki and Luca Caslin's oily Goro. However, while both improve later on, both Fabio Armiliato and Juan Pons are disappointing in roles that should suit them to the core. Armiliato's acting is not bad, he blends wonderfully with Dessi in the Act 1 duet, it is quite subtle and his despair in the final act does feel genuine. However, his voice has seen better days, in alternative to the ring and sheen he had with his Cavaradossi, Dick Johnson and Radames his tone is strained and dry. Pons does have his moments, when he reads the letter to Butterfly from Pinkerton he is very soft and caring. On the other hand, his vibrato here is disturbing and he blusters too much. I didn't care for Marco Camastra and Riccardo Zanellato, who both sing even for their characters unattractively.
In regard to the rest of the musical values, the orchestral playing does justice to the beautiful score, with nuanced phrasing, good textural balance and lush overall sound. The chorus look ridiculous and look uncomfortable, but manage to sing beautifully. The sound is decent. The video directing however is incredibly amateurish and distracting, not since the 2003 Tannhauser have I seen video directing this bad, though not as terrible as that production. It doesn't focus enough on the drama and the camera shots are rushed-looking and rather rudimentary in technique. The worst asset about the video directing though was that far too much time is spent on Domingo, the biggest offender being Un Bel Di Vedremo which doesn't focus on any of the stage drama but on him.
But this is nothing compared to the production values and staging. The costumes right from Butterfly in uncomfortable veils and collars, Suzuki dressed like a moth to Sharpless like a beetle and Pinkerton in a costume that I didn't have a clue as to what it was meant to be look terrible. The settings look like a barren desert, which may have worked for Manon Lescaut, but not here. In short, it jars completely with the libretto, I'm all for concept productions but not like this. The staging is mostly static and emotionless, so the final scene has no emotional impact whatsoever. The demented ballet steps in the Humming chorus were not needed.
Overall, loved Dessi and Domingo's conducting, but the video directing is wretched, the rest of the cast is uneven and the production values and staging look horrible and jars with the very specific libretto. One of the worst productions of Puccini's operas I've seen along with the Chemmitz Manon Lescaut and the Jose Cura Tosca, and possibly one of my least favourites ever. 3/10 Bethany Cox
