Madam Butterfly - Student Guide

MADAMA BUTTERFLY A STUDENT GUIDE

SYNOPSIS

Act I: Above the Nagasaki Harbor, Japan, 1904. United States Navy Lieutenant Benjamin Franklin Pinkerton waits outside a house he just rented from Goro, the local marriage agent. Goro tells Pinkerton that he just found a new girl named Cio-Cio San for Pinkerton to marry. (Cio-Cio San is also known as Madama Butterfly when she performs as a geisha.) Pinkerton later informs the American consul, Sharpless, that he has not only rented a house for 999 years, but with a contract that can be voided at the end of each month. He will also "marry" a geisha through a marriage contract that can end at any time, allowing him to marry an American woman when he returns to the United States. Sharpless is worried that Pinkerton's carefree attitude will hurt Butterfly's feelings because she believes this marriage is real.

Butterfly soon enters with her family and friends, singing about how happy she is on her wedding day. Privately, she shows her possessions to Pinkerton and explains how she helped support her family by earning money as a geisha. She also tells him that she is adopting a Western lifestyle and abandoning Japanese culture and tradition. Suddenly, Butterfly's uncle bursts into the middle of the wedding ceremony and curses her for rejecting her ancestors and their traditions. Furious, Pinkerton forces Butterfly's family to

leave the wedding. The married couple is alone for the first time, and they sing about their newly discovered love for each other.

Act II: It has been three years since their marriage. Pinkerton has returned to the United States and Butterfly faithfully waits for her husband's return. Butterfly's maid, Suzuki, comforts her and prays that she will stop crying and leave thoughts of Pinkerton behind. Meanwhile, Goro visits with a wealthy new suitor for Butterfly, Prince Yamadori, but, she refuses this marriage because she is certain that Pinkerton will return to her. For the first time since the wedding, Sharpless visits Butterfly's home, bringing a letter from Pinkerton about his new life in the United States stating that he will soon visit Japan with his American wife, Kate. In her excitement, Butterfly constantly interrupts Sharpless and he is never actually able to explain that Pinkerton is now married to an American. Butterfly is convinced that

Pinkerton will return when he learns that they have a son named Trouble. A few weeks later when Butterfly hears cannon fire in the distance announcing the return of Pinkerton's ship, she can hardly contain her excitement as she and Suzuki spread flower petals around the house. They wait together all night to watch for Pinkerton's return.

Act III: At dawn, Suzuki finally convinces Butterfly to get some rest. Pinkerton, Sharpless, and Kate arrive at the house. Suzuki suddenly realizes that Pinkerton is now married to Kate and, though devastated, promises to tell Butterfly. Pinkerton looks around the room remembering the love and happiness that they shared only to rush to the garden with remorse and guilt. Moments later, Butterfly enters the room and finds Kate and Sharpless. Knowing that Trouble will have a better life in the United States, Butterfly agrees to allow Kate to bring him to America, but only agrees if Pinkerton leaves the garden and comes personally to get him. Left alone, Butterfly prepares to take her life with her father's dagger. Suzuki senses this and sends Trouble to his mother to distract her. Butterfly bids him a final farewell and sends him outside to play with his new American toys. Butterfly takes her life just as Pinkerton desperately calls out her name.

COMPOSERAND LIBRETTISTS

Giacomo Puccini (1858 -1926)

Giacomo Puccini was born in Lucca, Italy on December 22, 1858. As a young man, he was expected to follow family tradition and become a church organist. However, at a young age, he visited Pisa, Italy, where he saw the famous opera Aida, by Giuseppe Verdi and vowed to become a composer.

Puccini studied at the Pacini Institute in Lucca for a few years, but moved to Milan, Italy in 1880 to enter the Conservatorio, or conservatory. During this period, Milan was famous for up and coming composers.

Madama Butterfly is based on a play of the same name he saw while in London, England. Although he did not understand the words because he did not speak English, he loved the beauty of the Japanese art and culture on the stage. Puccini studied Japanese folk melodies to use in Madama Butterfly. Madama Butterfly premiered on February 17, 1904 at La Scala, in Milan and was a complete disas-

Although historians now believe that Puccini's enemies engineered the failure, the original audience also probably disliked the opera because the second act was too long. After the premiere, Puccini made some minor changes and split the second act in two. Madama Butterfly opened again in Brescia, Italy with great success.

Puccini's other popular operas include Tosca and La Bohème, which the musical Rent is based. He died of throat cancer in Brussels, Belgium on November 29, 1924, leaving his final opera, Turandot, unfinished.

Giuseppe Giacosa (1847-1906) and Luigi Illica (18571919)

Giuseppe Giacosa began his professional life as a lawyer. After attending Turin University,

Giacosa joined his father's law firm but decided he would rather pursue a career in writing when a comedy piece he wrote, Una partita a scacchi, became wildly successful. Between 1888 and 1894, Giacosa was the chair of Literature and Dramatic Art at the Milan Conservatorio, where Puccini had studied just a few years earlier.

As a young man, Luigi Illica enjoyed adventure and travel and lived a life on the seas. In 1879, he returned to Milan, Italy, where he began his literary career. He wrote his first play, I Narbonnier-Latour, in 1883, but his greatest success as a playwright came later in 1891 with a comedy he wrote in the Milanese dialect, entitled L'eriditaa di Felis. As Illica's career began to flourish, he was invited by many composers to write opera libretti. The most notable, in addition to Madama Butterfly, is Andrea Chénier by composer Umberto Giordano.

CHARACTERS

Madama Butterfly/Cio-Cio San (CHO-cho-sahn) (Soprano) - a young geisha

Pinkerton (Tenor) - a lieutenant in the United States Navy

Suzuki (sue-ZOO-key) (Mezzo-soprano)- Butterfly’s maid

Sharpless (Baritone) - United States Consul in Nagasaki

Goro (GOH-roh) (Tenor) - a local marriage broker

The Bonze (Bass) - Butterfly’s uncle

Kate Pinkerton (Mezzo-soprano)

- Pinkerton’s American wife

Trouble (Mute) - Butterfly’s and Pinkerton’s son

Giulio Ricordi, the head of the most powerful publishing firm in Italy in the 19th-century, organized the partnership between Puccini, Illica, and Giacosa. The three had a very clear division of responsibilities when working together: Illica planned the "scenario" (the opera's plan and division into acts and scenes) and the dialogue; Giacosa then transformed the prose into polished verse; and finally, Puccini set this verse to music. The three worked successfully this way, with the same division of responsibilities on Tosca, La Bohème, and Madama Butterfly. Giacosa's death in 1906 was the reason that the "dream team" partnership between the two librettists and Puccini ended.

GIUSEPPE GIACOSA

LUIGI ILLICA

MEIJI RESTORATION

Japan went through a remarkable transformation between 1868 - 1912. This period of great change was called the Meiji Restoration (Mai-GEE) or "restoring the power of the emperor." To mark this transformation, the capital of Japan moved from Kyoto, where it had been since 794, to Tokyo, where it remains today.

Up until this time, the Tokugawa (ToKoo-Ga-Wa) or "great general" ruled Japan with help from independent feudal lords. For more than 100 years, Japan's borders were closed to Western trade and it had limited contact with other countries. However, during the Meiji Restoration, Japan opened its borders to Western trade, commerce, and diplomacy. Japanese diplomats were even sent abroad to study new technologies, military science, public education systems, and political institutions.

To unify Japanese society during these dramatic changes, the Meiji leaders turned to the emperor as a symbol of Japanese history, culture, and the future. The emperor, however, held no real political power. The real power was centered in the Diet, or elected parliament. The Diet wanted to transform Japan from an agricultural or farm-based society, to a modern country. The Diet was responsible for building railways, telegraph and telephone systems, and shipyards. In 1882, the government established Japan's first free public education system and children were guaranteed a free public education for at least six years.

During this cultural change, Japan's military also grew, and Western

BRAIN B OOSTER!

How has Japanese culture influenced America today? (Helpful Hint-think about food, clothing, music, and films.)

What are some of the reasons that Japan closed its borders to Western countries?

GEISHA

What is a geisha?

Geisha (gay-sha) literally translates to "gei" meaning art and "sha" meaning person. A geisha is a person who is highly trained in dancing, singing, playing music, serving tea, and other traditional art expressions. Geishas were both male and female, but female geishas became more common. The geisha culture dates back to the early 1700s and encompassed many styles of art.

What did it mean to be a geisha?

What did geishas do?

Starting around age nine, young girls were accepted into a special school to learn how to become a geisha. Many of these girls were either orphans or given away by their families in exchange for muchneeded money. They were then raised by an okami-san (o-kah-meesan), a retired geisha who invested a lot of money to pay for their schooling. They lived in houses called okiya, (o-kee-yah) where they were first a maid for the okami-san, then became a maiko (may-ko) or apprentice, and finally around age 20 they became a full geisha. Geishas were not allowed to marry, and if they did they were forced to give up their title of geisha. Although they were restricted in many ways, being a geisha was one of the few ways Japanese women of the Meiji Restoration could become educated and financially independent. These women were well regarded in society and earned money serving tea, dancing, and singing for important dignitaries and businessmen. These important clients also sought the advice of their geisha when making difficult decisions.

The geishas developed their artistic expression through many years of training. They were paid to dance, sing, recite poetry, and play the samisen, which is a traditional Japanese string instrument. A large part of the role of the geisha was to appear refined in society, and, consequently, they became very skilled in the art of calligraphy and serving tea and sake (Japanese rice wine). They were also skilled in the art of conversation and were respected as good listeners and advisors.

What instruments did geishas play? (sam-i-sen) The samisen is a long threestringed instrument similar to the length of a guitar. The musician plays the samisen with a plectrum or pick bachi.

When plucked, the samisen creates a buzzing sound known as a sawari. The samisen can be played solo or maybe with an ensemble of other samisens, traditional instruments, or accompanied by singing. The biwa (bee-wah) (pictured above) is another string instrument popular with geishas, though the biwa lost popularity during the 20th-century.

When visiting Japan today, you can hear the samisen in performances of traditional Japanese theater called kabuki. The samisen continues to have a strong future with Japanese culture as the next generation used these instruments in folk music, jazz, and other modern pieces.

What did geishas wear?

Although the dress of a geisha varied slightly depending on the woman's age, all wore elegant kimonos (keemo-nos). A kimono is a traditional layered robe and is still worn by Japanese elders today. A geisha's robe reached all the way to the floor, and was tied with an obi (o-bi). A traditional obi belt was actually comprised of many belts that were 13feet long and 2-feet wide. They were wrapped many times around the waist of the geisha and often tied into an elegant bow. Apprentice geishas wore vibrantly colored kimonos and obis while older geishas wore more subdued patterns. The colors of the kimono were complimented by the traditional makeup, which consisted of a thick white base, red lipstick, and red and black accents around the eyes. To complete their outfit, geishas created elaborate hairstyles by putting their hair up and using hair combs and hair pins as decorations. These hairstyles were so complicated that they would sleep with their necks on small supports instead of pillows to keep their hair perfect for as long as possible.

APONISME

BRAIN B OOSTER!

What are some Japanese art influences that you know of today?

(Helpful Hint-think about animation.)

Visit the Metropolitan Museum of Art online at www.met.org, the Art Institute of Chicago at www.artic.edu, or the National Gallery of Art at www.nga.gov and explore their collection of Post Impressionist artists such as Vincent Van Gogh and Henri Toulouse-Lautrec.

What shapes, colors, and patterns do you see in their works of art?

Now explore the museum's online collection of ukiyo-e prints.

Do you see any similarities between the two styles of art?

What differences do you see?

Japanese society was rapidly changing at the end of the 19th-century during the Meiji Restoration. When Japan reopened its borders in 1868, Western countries suddenly became fascinated with Japanese culture. The United States, England, and particularly France began to look to Japanese artists for inspiration. This influential artistic period is known as Japonisme, when all things Japanese became very popular in Western Europe and the United States. (u-ki-yo-ye) are woodblock prints that first arrived in Paris, France in the mid 1860s. These prints influenced musicians and artists alike. In fact, Camille Saint-Saëns wrote a one-act opera in La princesse jaune, about a Dutch girl who is jealous of her artist friend's fascination with an ukiyo-e woodblock print.

Dutch artist Vincent Van Gogh collected Japanese stamps and painted La Courtisane after he discovered an ukiyo-e print in a Parisian magazine. French artist Henri ToulouseLautrec studied the ukiyo-e woodblock's pattern surfaces, curved lives, and flatness to help develop his famous posters that hung in Paris dancing halls and bistros. This technique sparked an entirely new movement called Art Nouveau, or new art. Japonisme even inspired Giacomo Puccini while composing Madama Butterfly!

WOODBLOCK PRINT

B OWINGIN JAPAN

Just as we greet each other with a handshake, high-five, or hug, Japanese people bow. Bowing is still a very important traditional greeting in modern-day Japan. Men typically keep their hands at their sides when bowing while women clasp their hands in their lap. Both men and women bow to each other, but the length and depth of the bow is mostly determined by the social status of those bowing. For example, a young girl would likely make a deep and long bow to her grandmother. Different types of bows are used for different emotions or to say different things. A bow can say, thank you, sorry, hello, goodbye, congratulations, excuse me, goodnight, good morning, and so on. Japanese children and teachers even begin the school day by bowing to one another. In fact, it is not unusual for people to bow unconsciously while talking on the telephone!

EDUCATIONAND COMMUNITY PROGRAMS

AREMADEPOSSIBLEBY

THEGENEROUSSUPPORTOFTHESEFUNDERS:

$50,000 and above

Mr. and Mrs. John Pohanka

$25,000 and above

The Bank of America Charitable Foundation

Prince Charitable Trusts

$10,000 and above

DC Commission on the Arts and Humanities and the National Endowment for the Arts

Clark-Winchcole Foundation

Mr. and Mrs. Ken Feinberg

Jacob & Charlotte Lehrman Foundation

Philip L. Graham Fund

The Washington Post Company

$5,000 and above

The Honorable Max N. Berry and Mrs. Berry

Mr. and Mrs. Melvin S. Cohen

International Humanities

Mr. and Mrs. Eugene Rotberg

$2,500 and above

Mr. Walter Arnheim

The Max and Victoria Dreyfus Foundation Target

The K.P. and Phoebe Tsolainos Foundation

$1,000 and above

Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg and Professor Martin Ginsburg

Horwitz Family Foundation

George Wasserman Family Foundation, Inc.

Ms. Diane Wolf

WASHINGTON NATIONAL OPERA

Founded in 1956, Washington National Opera is recognized today as one of the leading opera companies in the United States. Under the leadership of General Director Plácido Domingo, Washington National Opera continues to build on its rich history by offering production of consistently high artistic standards and balancing popular grand opera with new or less frequently performed works.

As part of the Center for Education and Training at Washington National Opera, Education and Community Programs provides a wide array of programs to serve a diverse local and national audience of all ages. Our school-based programs offer students the opportunity to experience opera first handthrough in-depth yearlong school partnerships, the acclaimed Opera Look-In, the District of Columbia Public Schools Partnership, and the Kids Create Opera Partners (for elementary schools), and the Student Dress Rehearsal (for high schools) programs. Opera novices and aficionados alike have the opportunity to learn about the season through the Opera Insights series, presented throughout the season on the Kennedy Center Millennium Stage. All Insights are free, open to the pubic, and archived on the WNO website. Outreach to the greater Washington D.C. community is achieved through our numerous public Library Programs, the Family Look-In, and the Girl Scout Programs.

For more information on the programs offered by Washington National Opera, please visit our website at www.dc-opera.org or contact the Education and Community Programs of the Washington National Opera with any questions and/or requests for additional information at 202.448.3465 or education@dc-opera.org

CREDITS

Lead Writer and Editor:

Stephanie M. Wright, Education and Community Programs Manager

Writers:

Cory Davis, Education Intern

Joanna Ruf, Education Intern

Editors:

Michelle Krisel, Director of the Center for Education and Training

Caryn Fraim, Associate Director, Education and Community Programs

Rebecca Kirk, Education and Community Programs Associate

Design:

Suzan Reed, Suzan Reed Graphics

Some students at today's event are participating in the Arts for Every Student Program, an initiative of the DC Arts and Humanities Education Collaborative.