UK Opera Theatre Presents ‘Madama Butterfly’
LEXINGTON, Ky. (Feb. 25, 2019) — The University of Kentucky Opera Theatre (UKOT) will present Giacomo Puccini’s masterpiece “Madama Butterfly” March 1-3, at Singletary Center for the Arts Concert Hall.
Set in the late 1890s in Nagasaki, Japan, an American Naval officer, Pinkerton, arranges to take a young Japanese wife by the name of Cio-Cio-San, also known as Madama Butterfly. The celebrated opera follows the hope and heartbreak between these two young lovers as Pinkerton continues his service in America, while Cio-Cio-San is forced to stay behind in Japan.
"Madama Butterfly" will grace the stage 7:30 p.m. Friday and Saturday, March 1 and 2, and 2 p.m. Sunday, March 3. Tickets for the opera are priced by location. Students tickets are $15, general seating ranges between $45 and $55, and seniors’ tickets range between $40 and $50. Processing fees and sales tax will be applied to the ticket purchase. Tickets can be purchased at the Singletary Center box office, by phone at 859-257-4929 or online at www.scfatickets.com. Discounts are available to faculty and staff only when tickets are purchased through the Singletary Center ticket office.
In addition, for audience members wishing to explore the meaning of Asian representation in theater and culture, lectures and a round table will be presented before the opera. These events are sponsored by the UK Opera Research Alliance, in conjunction with UK Opera Theatre and the Division of Musicology and Ethnomusicology, with support of the School of Music and the College of Fine Arts. The lectures and round table are free and open to the public.
The round table will run 12:30-2 p.m. Thursday, Feb. 28, in the Singletary Center. This discussion will include a panel of UK professors including:
- Donna Kwon, associate professor of ethnomusicology;
- Cynthia Lawrence, endowed chair and professor of voice;
- Everett McCorvey, director of UK Opera Theatre;
- Doug Slaymaker, professor of Japan studies in the Department of Modern and Classical Languages, Literatures and Cultures;
- Akiko Takenaka, associate professor of history; and
- Stephen Wrentmore, stage director.
The discussion will be moderated by the coordinator of the Opera Research Alliance, Diana Hallman, associate professor of musicology.
A pre-opera lecture will take place immediately before the opening performance of “Madama Butterfly” beginning 6:30 p.m. Friday, March 1, in the Schmidt Vocal Arts Center. UK Opera Theatre vocal coach and music director, Tedrin Blair Lindsay, will give a talk on the music, drama and characters that will be seen throughout the performance.
Lindsay will offer a second lecture, “In Depth with Madame Butterfly,” sponsored by OperaLex, beginning 10 a.m. Saturday, March 2, at the Schmidt Vocal Arts Center.
