Signora Butterfly is widely regarded as one of the great Vodacce operas. It follows the love of the courtesan Butterfly for Puccini, a Vodacce nobleman. There is one straight plot line, without subplots. Girl wins boy, girl loses boy, girl commits suicide. The tale unfolds with well written dialogue, sung to music which captures the feelings of love and yearning and pain, raising the entire experience into the realm of great art, transcendently moving. This simple plot provides the vehicle for the arias of love and loss and hope and despair, and is considered one of the best Voddace operas. The play unfolds in three acts.
The first act focuses on Butterfly and her meeting Puccini. Puccini is newly wed, an arranged marriage to a strega, known only as Signora Puccini. He is a young man and a successful merchant, but trapped in a loveless marriage. Butterfly was born a daughter of a poor noble family, but her family fell on hard times and sold her to a cortesan school. As the opera opens she is newly graduated from courtesan school. While Butterfly works her charms on Puccini, it is she that is swept away by his passion. Soon the two pledge their love for each other and he purchases her contract.
The second act focuses on Puccini. In the second act Signora Puccini gives birth to his first child, a son, and his business starts to turn for the worse. In most variations of the play, Signora Puccini is shown pulling threads in the background as business deal after business deal falls through and quickly Puccini is on the verge of bankruptcy. He turns to his wife for aid, which she promises, but on the condition he break with Butterfly - permanently.
The third act returns to Butterfly some years later. She is now poor and destitute and is caring for Puccini's child. She's fallen so far that she now works as a common jenny rather than a courtesan. Desperate she begins to stalk Puccini, who does not know she has borne his child. Butterfly makes a scene at a party. The next day, Puccini, accompanied by his strega wife and looking very henpecked go to Butterfly to buy her off and send her away. Butterfly accepts the news and the bribe to leave calmly, then reveals to Puccini his son. She leaves the room so Puccini 'can get to know his child.' Instead she commits suicide, knowing that without her to raise his son, Puccini will adopt him.
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Butterfly Somiglio la Dea della luna, la piccola Dea della luna che scende la notte dal ponte del ciel. |
Butterfly I am like the goddess of the moon, the little goddess of the moon who comes down by night on the bridge of the sky. |
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Puccini E affascina i cuori. |
Puccini And bewitches all hearts. |
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Butterfly E li prende e li avvolge in un bianco mantel, e via se li reca negli alti reami. |
Butterfly And she takes them and wraps them in a white cloak, and bears them away to the realms above. |
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Puccini Ma intanto finor non m'hai detto, ancor non m'hai detto che m'ami. Le sa quella Dea le parole che appagan gli ardenti desir? |
Puccini But you have not yet told me, you still have not said that you love me. Does this goddess know the words that can satisfy such burning desire? |
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Butterfly Le sa. Forse dirle non vuole per tema d'averne a morir, per tema d'averne a morir! |
Butterfly She knows them. Perhaps she does not want to say them, for fear she might die of it, for fear she might die of it! |
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Puccini Stolta paura, l'amor non uccide ma dà vita, e sorride per gioie celestiali come ora fa nei tuoi lunghi occhi ovali. |
Puccini Foolish fear, love does not kill, but gives life, and smiles with heavenly joy, as it is now smiling in your almond eyes. |
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Butterfly Adesso voi siete per me l'occhio del firmamento. E mi piaceste dal primo momento che vi ho veduto. Siete alto, forte. Ridete con modi sì palesi e dite cose che mai non intesi. Or son contenta, or son contenta. (Si inginocchia ai piedi di Puccini.) Vogliatemi bene, un bene piccolino, un bene da bambino, quale a me si conviene. Vogliatemi bene. |
Butterfly Now you are for me the centre of the universe. I liked you from the first moment that I saw you. You are tall, strong. You laugh so freely and you talk of things I've never heard of. Now I am happy, now I am happy. (She kneels at Puccini's feet.) Love me, just a little, with the love of a baby, the love that is my due. Love me. |
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Puccini Dammi ch'io baci le tue mani care. Mia Butterfly! Come t'han ben nomata, tenue farfalla. |
Puccini Give me your lovely hands, so that I may kiss them. My Butterfly! How aptly you were named, slender butterfly. |
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Butterfly Dicon ch'oltre mare se cade in man dell'uom, ogni farfalla da uno spillo è trafitta ed in tavola infitta! |
Butterfly They say that in other countries if a butterfly is caught by a man, she is transfixed with a pin, and fastened to a board! |
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Puccini Un po' di vero c'è. E tu lo sai perchè? Perché non fugga più. Io t'ho ghermita, ti serro palpitante. Sei mia! |
Puccini There's some truth in that. And do you know why? So that she won't fly away. I have caught you, I hold you as you tremble. You are mine! |
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Butterfly Si, per la vita! |
Butterfly Yes, for my whole lifetime! |
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Puccini Vieni, vieni! Via dall'anima in pena l'angoscia paurosa. E notte serena! Guarda: dorme ogni cosa! |
Puccini Come then, come! Banish all fear and distress from your troubled heart. The night is peaceful! Look: everything is asleep! |
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Butterfly Ah! Dolce notte! |
Butterfly Ah! Lovely night! |
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Puccini Vieni, vieni! |
Puccini Come then, come! |
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Butterfly Quante stelle!... ... Non le vidi mai si belle! |
Butterfly All those stars! ..... I've never seen them so beautiful! |
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Puccini È notte serena! Ah! vieni, vieni! È notte serena! Guarda: dorme ogni cosa! |
Puccini The night is peaceful! Ah! Come then, come! The night is peaceful! Look: everything is asleep! |
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Butterfly Dolce notte! Quante stelle! Non le vidi mai sì belle! Trema, brilla, ogni favilla col baglior d'una pupilla! O! Quanti occhi fissi, attenti d'ogni parte a riguardar, pei firmamenti, via pei lidi, via pel mare! Quanti sguardi ride il ciel! Ah! Dolce notte! Tutto estatico d'amor, ride il ciel! |
Butterfly Lovely night! All those stars! I've never seen them so beautiful! Each little spark trembles and shines with the brightness of an eye! Oh! so many steady eyes, watching, looking from every corner, from the heavens, over the shore and across the sea! The sky smiles down! Lovely night! Full of the ecstasy of love, the sky smiles down! |
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Puccini Vieni, vieni! Vien, sei mia! Via l'angoscia dal tuo cor! Ti serro palpitante. Ah! Vieni, guarda: dorme ogni cosa! Ah! Vien, sei mia! |
Puccini Come then, come! Come, you are mine! Banish all distress from your heart! I hold you as you tremble. Come, look: everything is asleep! Ah, come, you are mine! |
Signora Butterfly is modelled off of Madame Butterfly, also an Italian opera, but one that wasn't written until centuries later. The plot is rewritten to give it a Vodacce twist. I've never seen Madame Butterfly myself, but I have seen Miss Saigon which is derived from Madame Butterfly.
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