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Sarasota Opera soars with moving ‘Madame Butterfly’ to open season

Gayle Williams, Special to the Herald-Tribune

Saturday’s opening of the Sarasota Opera winter season was bristling with pre-show anticipation for “Madame Butterfly,” arguably Giacomo Puccini’s best.  By the final curtain call, the audience was roaring its approval for its leading lady, showering Racquel González with love, while understandably booing Christopher Oglesby, high praise for his portrayal of a U.S. naval officer who unintentionally destroys the life of an innocent 15-year-old girl.

“Butterfly” is the musical story of Cio-Cio San, the young Japanese geisha, who is “married” to Lt. B.F. Pinkerton, who only imagines a temporary situation while he is stationed in Japan. He never suspects how attached she will become, that he fathered a child or what a tragic ending will result.

Musically, this production is beyond reproach. The Sarasota Opera Orchestra fills the hall with Puccini’s lush score, though initially competed with lines in the first act. However, conductor and Artistic Director Victor DeRenzi always leads the musicians with a firm vision and consummate skill.

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Racquel González as Cio-Cio San and Christopher Oglesby as B.F. Pinkerton in the Sarasota Opera production of “Madame Butterfly.”

With a soprano voice that can soar boldly and float with ease, González brings an enduring youthful innocence to Cio-Cio San, making it all the more wrenching when her spirit is broken. Singing the great soprano aria “Un bel di” (One beautiful day), the only future Cio-Cio San can imagine, González’s voice shimmers with both a woman’s desire and a childlike faith that the husband who abandoned her will eventually return to her.

The unfolding of the first night that Cio-Cio San and Pinkerton share is a slow, beguiling and simply gorgeous series of love duets. Together, González and Oglesby are remarkably well-matched, though even his pleasurably smooth tenor voice and confident stance can’t distract us from the unlikeable cad.

In a frank early conversation with the U.S. Consul Sharpless (Filippo Fontana), Pinkerton focuses only on the convenient satisfaction of carnal desire comparing his marriage to a house lease that can be broken after a month. Fontana’s Sharpless, an honorable man, cautions Pinkerton to honor the marriage and not break the innocent girl’s heart. He returns twice more in subsequent acts to do the best he can to make a bad situation better. In both voice and subtle movements, Fontana reveals the inner conflict between delivering distasteful news and caring for Butterfly’s well-being more than Pinkerton ever does.

The first act is satisfying on so many levels. David P. Gordon’s set is stunning in its detail with a charming Japanese house and garden that can accommodate a procession of Cio-Cio San’s family for the wedding, along with the marriage broker Goro (Miles Herr) and the Imperial Commissioner (Paul Hill), who conducts the wedding ceremony.

By the second act, Cio-Cio San and her maid, Suzuki (Heather Johnson) have been waiting for three years for Pinkerton’s return. Johnson is a strong force as the supportive but realistic friend to Butterfly. Later, it falls on Suzuki to witness the final betrayal. Butterfly’s resolve does not bend, even when Goro encourages her to move on and offers another suitor, Prince Yamadori (Heeseung Chae).

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Filippo Fontana as the U.S. Consul Sharpless and Racquel González in the title role of “Madame Butterfly” at Sarasota Opera.

Director Stephanie Sundine, lighting designer Ken Yunker and the cast create a moving scene as Cio-Cio San and Suzuki stand vigil through the night waiting for Pinkerton after seeing his ship in the harbor. We see sunset, moonlight and eventual sunrise unfold as the hushed voices of the famous Humming Chorus suspend time.

Pinkerton’s arrival triggers a series of desperate actions. A powerful ensemble anchors the pain as he waxes nostalgic while Suzuki and Sharpless discuss the harsh reality in “Io so che alle sue pene” ("I know that her pain"). Pinkerton’s remorse may be genuine, but it is too late. Oglesby leaves us with the feeling that Pinkerton’s not sorry about his decisions, only that Butterfly’s death hurts.

Sundine’s team pays attention to every detail. The little nuances of movement feel authentic. Though the traditional choice to keep Butterfly’s suicide behind a screen can be effective, it misses an element of shock that could be boosted.

The operas featured this season offer a variety of riches to enjoy, but if you have only one ticket to buy, this may be the one.

‘Madame Butterfly’

By Giacomo Puccini. Conducted by Victor DeRenzi, directed by Stephanie Sundine. Reviewed Feb. 18, Sarasota Opera House, 61 N. Pineapple Ave., Sarasota. Through March 24. 941-328-1300; sarasotaopera.org