Puccini claimed that he had poured his heart and soul into his creation of the opera Madame Butterfly. All his life he was referring to it as his best and most modern piece of work. The destiny of Japanese woman, who, failing to fulfil her desire of love stabs herself to death, had by all means deeply touched the composer, since his depiction of the famous story presents an outstanding fusion of his creative composing force and the main character's lyrical and heartbreaking psychological drama. Madame Butterfly, based on the literary material by American writer David Belasco and premiered at the La Scala Theatre in Milan in 1904, is considered one of the most popular operatic pieces frequently staged as a part of classical repertoire of many opera theatres around the world.

Text: Tatjana Ažman