LibrettoArchive Opera Libretti • Translations • History
Giacomo Puccini operas
• Le Villi (1884)
• Edgar (1889)
• Manon Lescaut (1893)
• La bohème (1896)
• Tosca (1900)
• Madama Butterfly (1904)
• La fanciulla del West (1910)
• Il trittico (Il tabarro, Suor Angelica, Gianni Schicchi) (1918)
• Turandot (1926)

“Madama Butterfly” by Giacomo Puccini

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Madame Butterfly
Madama Butterfly: Opera Libretto with Italian–English Translation
Paperback libretto with side-by-side translation

Read Madama Butterfly with the original libretto and a clear English translation presented side by side.

See on Amazon – $13.99 → 📄 Preview sample (PDF)

Premiere / date of written: 17 February 1904

The original version of the opera, in two acts, had its premiere on February 17, 1904, at La Scala in Milan.

Libretti

Italian–English side-by-side translation

# Language Authors
1 Italian Luigi Illica, Giuseppe Giacosa
2 German
3 English
4 French

original libretto
side-by-side of the original libretto

History

December 27, 1903 1903-12-27 — Giacomo Puccini finished the score of Madama Butterfly (ahead of the planned La Scala production in February 1904).
February 17, 1904 World premiere of Puccini’s "Madama Butterfly" at La Scala (Teatro alla Scala) in Milan.
May 28, 1904 Puccini's revised version of "Madama Butterfly" was staged in Brescia, where it became a major success after the failed La Scala premiere.
July 7, 1904 First performance of Puccini’s "Madama Butterfly" outside Italy, staged in Buenos Aires under the baton of Arturo Toscanini.
November 12, 1906 First New York performance of Puccini’s "Madama Butterfly" at the Garden Theatre.
February 11, 1907 Company premiere of Puccini’s "Madama Butterfly" at the Metropolitan Opera (New York).
February 24, 1934 Birth of Renata Scotto, Italian soprano celebrated for roles including "Madama Butterfly" and "La traviata".
March 18, 2003 Premiere at the Royal Opera House of the Moshe Leiser and Patrice Caurier production of Puccini’s "Madama Butterfly".

You might also enjoy

Similar Theme

  • La bohème (1896) — Giacomo Puccini Mimì and Cio-Cio-San are very different women, but both Puccini operas build toward the loss of a young woman whose hopes for love cannot survive.
  • La traviata (1853) — Giuseppe Verdi Both heroines give up security for love and eventually make a sacrifice for the man they love. Social judgment is never far from either story.

Good Next Choice

  • Manon Lescaut (1893) — Giacomo Puccini Manon Lescaut is another early Puccini tragedy centered almost completely on its heroine and the price she pays for love.
  • Tosca (1900) — Giacomo Puccini Tosca gives you another Puccini heroine who loves without hesitation. Her response to danger is much more active than Cio-Cio-San's long wait.
  • La fanciulla del West (1910) — Giacomo Puccini Another Puccini opera shaped by a meeting between different cultures. Minnie has far more control over her own world and gets a very different ending.
  • Jenůfa (1904) — Leoš Janáček Jenůfa offers another story of a young mother left to face the consequences after the child's father fails her. Its village setting and eventual forgiveness make the outcome very different.

Contrasting Companion

  • Turandot (1926) — Giacomo Puccini Two Puccini operas built around very different ideas of Asia. Butterfly is intimate and painfully realistic; Turandot is ceremonial, distant, and almost a fairy tale.

Same Source Author

  • La fanciulla del West (1910) — Giacomo Puccini Both operas use plays by David Belasco as dramatic sources: Madama Butterfly draws on Madame Butterfly and La fanciulla del West on The Girl of the Golden West.

Tags

Genre: Verismo
Style / Movement: Late Romantic
Structure: Full-length Through-composed
Source: Based on literature Based on a play
Theme: Tragic love
Discovery: Beginner-friendly Crowd-pleaser
Setting: 19th-century setting
Place: Japan

Related operas

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Also in Italian

Images

Notable videos

  Renata Tebaldi sings Madama Butterfly

Renata Tebaldi sings "Death of Butterfly" (excerpt) 1961

Printed Editions

Year Edition Publisher Buy
2025 Madama Butterfly: Opera Libretto with Italian–English Translation DM’s Opera Series Amazon.com

Audio recordings

Year Cast Conductor,
Opera chorus and orchestra		 Label,
Comment		 Buy
1954 Cio-Cio San — Victoria de los Ángeles,
Pinkerton — Giuseppe Di Stefano,
Suzuki — Anna Maria Canali,
Sharpless — Tito Gobbi,
Goro — Renato Ercolani,
Uncle Bonze — Bruno Sbalchiero,
Kate Pinkerton — Maria Huder,
Prince Yamadori — Arturo La Porta		 Gianandrea Gavazzeni
Rome Opera House Orchestra and Chorus
 Recorded by HMV. CD: Testament Cat: 2168

 Amazon.com
$13.98
1958 Cio-Cio San — Renata Tebaldi,
Pinkerton — Carlo Bergonzi,
Suzuki — Fiorenza Cossotto,
Sharpless — Enzo Sordello,
Goro — Angelo Mercuriali,
Uncle Bonze — Paolo Washington,
Kate Pinkerton — Lidia Nerozzi,
Prince Yamadori — Michele Cazzato (Casato)		 Tullio Serafin
Santa Cecilia Academy Orchestra and Chorus, Rome
 CD: Decca, Cat: 452594

 Amazon.com
$13.81
1960 Cio-Cio San — Victoria de los Ángeles,
Pinkerton — Jussi Björling,
Suzuki — Miriam Pirazzini,
Sharpless — Mario Sereni,
Goro — Piero De Palma,
Uncle Bonze — Paolo Montarsolo,
Kate Pinkerton — Silvia Bertona,
Prince Yamadori — Arturo La Porta		 Gabriele Santini
Rome Opera House Orchestra and Chorus
 CD: EMI, Cat: 7636342

 Amazon.com
$82.05
1966 Cio-Cio San — Renata Scotto,
Pinkerton — Carlo Bergonzi,
Suzuki — Anna di Stasio,
Sharpless — Rolando Panerai,
Goro — Piero De Palma,
Uncle Bonze — Paolo Montarsolo,
Kate Pinkerton — Silvana Padoan,
Prince Yamadori — Giuseppe Morresi		 Sir John Barbirolli
Rome Opera House Orchestra and Chorus
 CD: EMI Classics, Cat: 67888

 Amazon.com
$16.99
1974 Cio-Cio San — Mirella Freni,
Pinkerton — Luciano Pavarotti,
Suzuki — Christa Ludwig,
Sharpless — Robert Kerns,
Goro — Michel Sénéchal,
Uncle Bonze — Marius Rintzler,
Kate Pinkerton — Elke Schary,
Prince Yamadori — Giorgio Stendoro		 Herbert von Karajan
Vienna Philharmonic Orchestra, Vienna State Opera Chorus
 CD: Decca, Cat: 417577

 Amazon.com
$20.05
1976 Cio-Cio San — Montserrat Caballé,
Pinkerton — Bernabé Martí,
Suzuki — Silvana Mazzieri,
Sharpless — Franco Bordoni,
Goro — Piero De Palma,
Uncle Bonze — Juan (Joan) Pons,
Kate Pinkerton — María (Asunción) Uriz,
Prince Yamadori — Dalmacio González		 Armando Gatto
Barcelona Symphony Orchestra, Gran Teatre del Liceu Chorus
 Audio LP: Decca, Cat: 7484/86

 Amazon.com
$24.60
1978 Cio-Cio San — Renata Scotto,
Pinkerton — Plácido Domingo,
Suzuki — Gillian Knight,
Sharpless — Ingvar Wixell,
Goro — Florindo Andreolli,
Uncle Bonze — Malcolm King,
Kate Pinkerton — Ann Murray,
Prince Yamadori — Jonathan Summers		 Lorin Maazel
Philharmonia Orchestra and the Ambrosian Opera Chorus
 CD: CBS Masterworks, Cat: 35181

 Amazon.com
$16.96
1987 Cio-Cio San — Mirella Freni,
Pinkerton — José Carreras,
Suzuki — Teresa Berganza,
Sharpless — Juan Pons,
Goro — Anthony Laciura,
Uncle Bonze — Kurt Rydl,
Kate Pinkerton — Marianne Rerholm,
Prince Yamadori — Mark Curtis		 Giuseppe Sinopoli
Philharmonia Orchestra, Ambrosian Opera Chorus
 CD: Deutsche Grammophon, Cat: 423567

 Amazon.com
$19.95
2009 Cio-Cio San — Angela Gheorghiu,
Pinkerton — Jonas Kaufmann,
Suzuki — Enkelejda Shkosa,
Sharpless — Fabio Capitanucci,
Goro — Gregory Bonfatti,
Uncle Bonze — Raymond Aceto,
Kate Pinkerton — Cristina Reale,
Prince Yamadori — Roberto Valentini		 Sir Antonio Pappano
Orchestra dell'Accademia Nazionale di Santa Cecilia
 CD: EMI Classics, Cat: 456215-2

 Amazon.com
$19.61

Video recordings

Year Cast Conductor,
Opera chorus and orchestra,
Director		 Label,
Comment		 Buy
1956 Cio-Cio San — Anna Moffo,
Pinkerton — Renato Cioni,
Suzuki — Miti Truccato Pace,
Sharpless — Afro Poli,
Goro — Gino Del Signore,
Il Bonzo — Dimitri Lopatto,
Kate Pinkerton — Lella Dori,
Il Principe Yamadori — Pierluigi Latinucci		 Oliviero De Fabritiis
Chorus and Orchestra della RAI di Milano
Mario Lanfranchi		 DVD: VAI

 Amazon.com
$35.79
1974 Cio-Cio San — Mirella Freni,
Pinkerton — Plácido Domingo,
Suzuki — Christa Ludwig,
Sharpless — Robert Kerns,
Goro — Michel Sénéchal,
Il Bonzo — Marius Rintzler,
Kate Pinkerton — Elke Schary,
Il Principe Yamadori — Giorgio Stendoro		 Herbert von Karajan
Vienna Philharmonic Orchestra and Vienna State Opera Chorus
Jean-Pierre Ponnelle		 DVD: Deutsche Grammophon Cat: 00440 073 4037

 Amazon.com
$34.83
1995 Cio-Cio San — Ying Huang,
Pinkerton — Richard Troxell,
Suzuki — Ning Liang,
Sharpless — Richard Cowan,
Goro — Jing Ma Fan,
Uncle Bonze — Kusakabe Yo,
Kate Pinkerton — Constance Hauman,
Prince Yamadori — Christopheren Nòmura		 James Conlon
Orchestre de Paris
Frédéric Mitterrand		 Sony Pictures Home Entertainment

 Amazon.com
$10.99

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