Japan through the prism of opera... TheOpéra Bastille offers several performances of Giacomo Puccini's major work Madame Butterfly, from September 14 to November 13, 2019. A tragedy in two acts, sometimes split into three, set in the Land of the Rising Sun at the beginning of the 20th century, it brings together two worlds that are at odds with each other.
First, that of Cio-Cio san (Madame Butterfly in English), a 15-year-old geisha who takes marriage very seriously and remains faithful to her traditions, but also that of Benjamin Franklin Pinkerton, an American soldier who falls in love with the young woman, rents a traditional house and marries her for fun. Like Romeo and Juliet, these two worlds end in the death of one of them, in this case Madame Butterfly, who, learning that Pinkerton has married another woman while she's away, kills herself by Jigai, a ritual suicide rather reserved for women (equivalent to seppuku).
The opera was inspired in part by Pierre Loti's Madame Chrysanthème, which tells approximately the same story, namely that of a young French naval officer who goes to Japan and marries a Japanese woman, Kiku-san (Madame Chrysanthème), in Nagazaki. Unlike Pierre Loti's work, which is based on his own experience, Giacomo Puccini draws his inspiration here from"popular melodies and the sounds of Japanese voices". Robert Wilson's uncluttered staging"marries perfectly the dramatic intensity and underlying violence of this Japanese-influenced tragedy". Let's escape for an evening, folks?
Dates and Opening Time
From September 14th, 2019 to November 13th, 2019
Location
Opera Bastille
Place de la Bastille
75012 Paris 12
Access
Metro lines 1, 5 and 8, "Bastille" station
Prices
Catégorie 10: €5
Catégorie 9: €15
Catégorie 8: €35
Catégorie 7: €50
Catégorie 6: €70
Catégorie 5: €100
Catégorie 4: €135
Catégorie 3: €155
Catégorie 2: €175
Catégorie 1: €190
Catégorie Optima: €210
Average duration
2 h
45 min
Official website
www.operadeparis.fr
More information
Premieres September 14 at 7:30pm, September 19, October 9, 12, 19, 26, 29, 30, November 2, 6, 8, 9 and 13, 2019 at 7:30pm. November 1 at 2:30pm. Under-40s ticket on November 5 at 7:30pm. Audio-description for performances on October 19, 29 and November 1.