The ENO is reviving this masterpiece at the London Coliseum as a tribute to Oscar-winning film director Anthony Minghella following his sudden death last year. He turned his creative genius to the operatic stage in 2005 and the result was this stunning, soaring version of Madam Butterfly. Minghella worked on the production alongside his wife, choreographer Carolyn Choa, making her the perfect person to direct this revival. Puccini's tale of a geisha who gives up
everything for dashing American Lieutenant Pinkerton, only to be
abandoned and then cruelly betrayed, is rich material. Japanese lanterns bring the exotic setting into dramatic focus and there's some stunning imagery including a ballet sequence surrounded by showers of cherry blossom. Choa's choreography also displays the formality and power of Far Eastern theatre traditions while Han Feng's extravagant costumes bathe the stage in a riot of seductive colour. A huge angled mirror above the stage lets audiences glimpse an alternative and sometimes hidden world. This promises to be a passionate revival of a simply beautiful production.
Photo: Johan Persson
What's on at
London Coliseum - English National Opera (ENO)
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The ENO is reviving this masterpiece at the 
