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''Madame Butterfly: A Tragedy of Japan'' is a play in one act by
''Madame Butterfly'' was first performed March 5, 1900, at the Herald Square Theatre in New York City, after the curtain raiser ''Naughty Anthony''. The play was written and produced by David Belasco, with scenic design by Ernest Gros; incidental music was composed by
''Plays of the Present''
Dunlap Society, pp. 165–167 *Girardi, Michele (2002)
''Puccini: His International Art''
University of Chicago Press. *Kerr, Douglas (1991)
"David Henry Hwang and the Revenge of Madame Butterfly"
in ''Asian Voices in English'', Roy Harris (ed.). Hong Kong University Press, pp. 119–130. *van Rij, Jan (2001)
''Madame Butterfly: Japonisme, Puccini, & the Search for the Real Cho-Cho-San''
Stone Bridge Press.
Full text of ''Madame Butterfly, A Tragedy of Japan''
(from "Six Plays" Little, Brown 1928)
a comparison of Long's short story, Belasco's play, and Puccini's opera.
Madame Butterfly - catalog record for the incidental music used for the play
(part of the Belasco Collection in the Music Division of the New York Public Library for the Performing Arts). Plays by David Belasco Plays based on short fiction 1900 plays Japan in fiction One-act plays Japan in non-Japanese culture {{1900s-play-stub
''Madame Butterfly: A Tragedy of Japan'' is a play in one act by David Belasco
David Belasco (July 25, 1853 – May 14, 1931) was an American theatrical producer, impresario, director, and playwright. He was the first writer to adapt the short story ''Madame Butterfly'' for the stage. He launched the theatrical career of m ...
adapted from John Luther Long
John Luther Long (January 1, 1861 – October 31, 1927) was an American lawyer and writer best known for his short story "Madame Butterfly", which was based on the recollections of his sister, Jennie Correll, who had been to Japan with her husba ...
's 1898 short story " Madame Butterfly". It premiered on March 5, 1900, at the Herald Square Theatre in New York City and became one of Belasco's most famous works. The play and Long's short story served as the basis for the libretto
A libretto (Italian for "booklet") is the text used in, or intended for, an extended musical work such as an opera, operetta, masque, oratorio, cantata or Musical theatre, musical. The term ''libretto'' is also sometimes used to refer to the t ...
of Puccini
Giacomo Puccini (Lucca, 22 December 1858Bruxelles, 29 November 1924) was an Italian composer known primarily for his operas. Regarded as the greatest and most successful proponent of Italian opera after Verdi, he was descended from a long lin ...
's 1904 opera, ''Madama Butterfly
''Madama Butterfly'' (; ''Madame Butterfly'') is an opera in three acts (originally two) by Giacomo Puccini, with an Italian libretto by Luigi Illica and Giuseppe Giacosa.
It is based on the short story "Madame Butterfly" (1898) by John Luther ...
''. The title role was originally played in New York and London by Blanche Bates; in 1900–01 in New York by Valerie Bergere;
and in 1913 by Clara Blandick.
Production
''Madame Butterfly'' was first performed March 5, 1900, at the Herald Square Theatre in New York City, after the curtain raiser ''Naughty Anthony''. The play was written and produced by David Belasco, with scenic design by Ernest Gros; incidental music was composed by William Furst
William Wallace Furst (March 25, 1852 – July 11, 1917) was an American composer of musical theatre pieces and a music director, best remembered for supplying incidental music to theatrical productions on Broadway.
Biography
Furst was born in ...
.
Cast
* Blanche Bates as Cho-Cho-San *Claude Gillingwater
Claude Benton Gillingwater (August 2, 1870 – November 1, 1939) was an American stage and screen actor. He first appeared on the stage then in more than 90 films between 1918 and 1939, including the Academy Award-nominated ''A Tale of Two ...
as Mr. Sharpless
* Frank Worthing
Frank Worthing (October 12, 1866 – December 27, 1910) was a Scottish born American stage actor. He was well respected on the Broadway stage and his early death at 44 brought considerable mourning from his fellow actors and costars. He work ...
as Lieut. B. F. Pinkerton
* Albert Bruning as Yamadori.
* E. P. Wilks as Nakado
* Mary Barker as Suzuki
* Katharine Black as Kate
* Little Kittle as "Trouble"
See also
*Portrayal of Asians in American theater
Portrayals of East Asians in American film and theatre has been a subject of controversy. These portrayals have frequently reflected an ethnocentric perception of East Asians rather than realistic and authentic depictions of East Asian cultures, c ...
Further reading
*Clapp, John Bouvé and Edgett, Edwin Francis (1902)''Plays of the Present''
Dunlap Society, pp. 165–167 *Girardi, Michele (2002)
''Puccini: His International Art''
University of Chicago Press. *Kerr, Douglas (1991)
"David Henry Hwang and the Revenge of Madame Butterfly"
in ''Asian Voices in English'', Roy Harris (ed.). Hong Kong University Press, pp. 119–130. *van Rij, Jan (2001)
''Madame Butterfly: Japonisme, Puccini, & the Search for the Real Cho-Cho-San''
Stone Bridge Press.
References
External links
*Full text of ''Madame Butterfly, A Tragedy of Japan''
(from "Six Plays" Little, Brown 1928)
a comparison of Long's short story, Belasco's play, and Puccini's opera.
Madame Butterfly - catalog record for the incidental music used for the play
(part of the Belasco Collection in the Music Division of the New York Public Library for the Performing Arts). Plays by David Belasco Plays based on short fiction 1900 plays Japan in fiction One-act plays Japan in non-Japanese culture {{1900s-play-stub