Heritage Opera's Puccini Classic Madame Butterfly comes to Epstein Theatre

Written By: Mark Armstrong

Provided By: The Epstein Theatre

Heritage Opera, the Northwest’s professional touring opera company, visits the Epstein Theatre for the first time on Saturday 26 September with Puccini’s heart-breaking story of undying love and longing, presented in its own inimitable fashion.

Set in Nagasaki 1925, Madame Butterfly tells the story of Cio Cio San, a naïve girl with passionate dreams of romance who marries Lieutenant B.F. Pinkerton of the US Navy. His ideas of marital commitment are somewhat different to hers and he soon leaves her to sail back to America. Cio Cio San waits patiently for him for three years, refusing to acknowledge that she has been abandoned and firmly believing he will one day return to claim her as his wife. At last, Pinkerton’s ship, the USS Abraham Lincoln is seen on the horizon. For Madame Butterfly however there will be no happy ending.

Merseyside-born and raised soprano, Sarah Helsby Hughes directs and sings the lead role of Madame Butterfly and is supported by a professional cast of 10 singers and accompanied by an ensemble of seven musicians.

Sarah went to Maricourt High School in Maghull and, after graduating from Birmingham Conservatoire of Music, she worked in Liverpool city centre as a temp. One day, fed up with being stuck in an office on a bright sunny day she decided to try her hand at busking and soon she was singing opera to startled shoppers and office workers. Fast forward 6 years, and Sarah is now Artistic Director of Heritage Opera, the Northwest’s professional touring Opera Company.

Heritage Opera specialises in making opera relevant and accessible for everyone and they have taken opera to places neglected by other companies. Heritage Opera is also very proud of its Northern roots and another of its artistic aims is to employ northern-based singers and musicians wherever possible. This Madame Butterfly tour boasts 9 of 10 singers and 6 of 7 musicians who either live in or have strong historic ties to the North.

Sarah Helsby Hughes, director and performer at Heritage Opera, commented: "We're delighted to be performing at The Epstein, who'd have thought I'd be bringing my own opera company home to Liverpool, all those years after years of busking just round the corner! I do hope the Liverpool public come and support us."

For more information, click here.

The Show Must Go On!

Written By: Mark Armstrong

Provided By: Liverpool Empire Theatre

Iconic operas La Traviata and Madama Butterfly are both coming to the Liverpool Empire Theatre next month as part of a national spring tour of Britain and Ireland.

Staged by award-winning producer Ellen Kent, theatregoers will have the opportunity to see stunning productions of Verdi’s La Traviata on Friday April 3 and then the Puccini masterpiece Madama Butterfly the following day on Saturday April 4.

This is the latest tour for Kent, who recently won praise for her national tours of Nabucco, Aida and La Boheme.

All soloists in Kent’s operas have been specifically chosen and directed by the producer, and feature highly-acclaimed international performers.

Kent has had many adventures over the past 22 years producing Operas from Eastern Europe, working with Presidents and national opera houses throughout.

Even encountering the Orange Revolution in Odessa, which broke out during her rehearsals of Butterfly and Traviata in 2005.

This year, Ellen set out to work on a tour with The Ukraine National Opera in Kharkiv and found herself six miles from a very bloody civil war. Kent thought: “Here we go again.” But, as she previously said in 2005, “The show must go on!”

And so she was still prepared to travel and rehearse in Kharkiv. However, Ellen was persuaded by the British Foreign Office not to travel due to fatalities and kidnappings, not to mention bombings in the area. With the support of the Kharkiv Opera, Ellen managed to transport the complete sets, props and costumes for all three productions, despite being close to the bombing and insurgents robbing transport on the Ukrainian roads. Ellen moved the entire operation to the safe haven of the National Opera of Moldova, where she has worked for over 18 years.

Ion Grosu, the director, offered Ellen the entire support of the opera house to enable Ellen to complete the project. The company on tour, where the operas are receiving excellent notices, includes Ukrainians, Moldovans and Russians all working together in perfect harmony, so it seems that Ellen’s powers of diplomacy have succeeded where many heads of state have failed in recent days.

VERDI LA TRAVIATA

Starring Elena Dee and Alyona Kistenyova, this is a love story that gripped Paris and it returns by popular demand. A tragic tale of searing passion and memorable music, La Traviata is Verdi’s outstanding interpretation of one of the most popular love stories of the 19th century, La Dame aux Camelias.

Based on a true story, it tells of the passionate loves and life of the consumptive courtesan, Violetta. There are many echoes of Verdi’s own life in Traviata and he threw himself into the music. The highlights include the Brindisi, the best-known drinking song in opera, the duet Un Di Felice and Violetta’s haunting aria Addio Del Passato. This magnificent production boasts sumptuous sets and costumes.

PUCCINI MADAMA BUTTERFLY

Madama Butterfly is Puccini’s popular tale upon which the hit West End musical Miss Saigon is based. International Korean soprano Elena Dee, whose emotional portrayal of Mimi in Ellen Kent’s recent La Boheme received such high praise, will be singing the role of the tragic Cio Cio San. Zinevych, who captured hearts via his portral of Rudolpho in La Boheme and who has sung with Pavarotti, returns with the 70-strong company to perform his Pinkerton.

Making his debut as Pinkerton in an Ellen Kent production is the Spanish Tenor Giorgio Meladze. Originally from Georgia, he has acquired critical acclaim in Europe, singing in Milan, Spain and across Europe. Giorgio Meladze sang with Jose Carreras at the Austrian opera festival Tiroler Festspiele Erl last summer. Music is provided by the esteemed Chisinau National Philharmonic orchestra and conducted by Nicolae Dohotaru.

Madama Butterfly is the heart-breaking story of the beautiful Japanese girl, who falls in love with an American naval lieutenant, resulting in a heart-wrenching drama. This magnificent production boasts beautiful sets and costumes and a large live orchestra. Highlights of the performance include the melodic Humming Chorus, the moving aria One Fine Day and the unforgettable Love Duet.

As with any of Ellen Kent’s shows, all of the soloists have been hand-picked and directed by Ellen to create a visually beautiful and moving production of Madama Butterfly.

Verdi La Traviata runs in the Liverpool Empire Theatre on Friday April 3. For ticket information, click here.

You can learn more about Verdi La Traviata by clicking here.

Puccini Madama Butterfly runs in the Liverpool Empire Theatre on Saturday April 4. For ticket information, click here.

You can learn more about Puccini Madama Butterfly by clicking here.