{"id":238391,"date":"2016-04-01T00:00:00","date_gmt":"2016-04-01T07:00:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/sdnews.com\/opera-a-tragic-marriage-in-nagasaki\/"},"modified":"2016-04-01T00:00:00","modified_gmt":"2016-04-01T07:00:00","slug":"opera-a-tragic-marriage-in-nagasaki","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/test.sdnews.com\/es\/opera-a-tragic-marriage-in-nagasaki\/","title":{"rendered":"Opera: a tragic marriage in Nagasaki"},"content":{"rendered":"

por David Dixon<\/p>\n

Garnett Bruce \u2014 director of the famed Opera de Montreal \u2014 returns to Downtown San Diego later this month to present Giacomo Puccini\u2019s Italian opera, \u201cMadama Butterfly.\u201d<\/p>\n

This will be the fourth time Bruce has staged the tragic story for the San Diego Opera and its fans.<\/p>\n

\"Madama<\/a>
Latonia Moore in costume at The Met in NYC last month (Photo by Marty Sohl)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Set in Nagasaki, Japan, in the early 20th century, a geisha, Cio-Cio-San (Latonia Moore) falls for an American Naval officer, B.F. Pinkerton (Teodor Ilincai).<\/p>\n

Though the couple weds, the union is bittersweet, because while Cio-Cio-San believes she has found true love, Pinkerton does not take their arranged overseas vows seriously.<\/p>\n

Bruce said he has read the original short story, \u201cMadame Butterfly,\u201d and seen the David Belasco play, \u201cMadame Butterfly: A Tragedy of Japan.\u201d Both the tale and the drama enhanced his appreciation of Puccini\u2019s music and the libretto written by Luigi Illica and Giuseppe Giacosa.<\/p>\n

\u201cBelasco\u2019s script is not a kind portrayal of either Asians or Americans,\u201d he said. \u201cPuccini softened these characters and believed in them with the help of glorious music.\u201d<\/p>\n

The singer who gets to perform some of Puccini\u2019s most unforgettable melodies is J\u2019nai Bridges, who plays Suzuki, Cio-Cio-San\u2019s maid. Suzuki does what she can to remain loyal as her employer goes through challenging times.<\/p>\n

The mezzo-soprano said she doesn\u2019t wish her portrayal of Suzuki to be viewed as merely that of a \u201csimple domestic.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cIt\u2019s really easy to play this [role] just like a servant who follows instructions,\u201d she said. \u201cI think she\u2019s deeper than just a woman who runs errands.\u201d<\/p>\n

\"Press_Photoweb\"<\/a>
Latonia Moore (Courtesy San Diego Opera)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

In the upcoming production at the San Diego Civic Theatre, the bond between Cio-Cio-San and Suzuki will be an important part of the narrative.<\/p>\n

\u201cI feel like they are sisters in a way,\u201d Bridges said. \u201cSuzuki cares a lot about Cio-Cio-San and does not want her to get hurt.\u201d<\/p>\n

An aspect of Puccini\u2019s music that continues to fascinate Bruce is the composer\u2019s meticulous artistry.<\/p>\n

\u201cPuccini is very structured,\u201d he said. \u201cHe knows how to hold the attention of an audience and how to take them on an unforgettable journey.\u201d<\/p>\n

Bridges acknowledges the beauty of Puccini\u2019s compositions.<\/p>\n

\u201cHis music feeds the soul,\u201d she said. \u201cPuccini\u2019s music is really relatable and accessible to people\u2019s emotions.\u201d<\/p>\n

Even though the interpretation is going to be traditional, Bruce said in-house technology will keep each scene visually fresh.<\/p>\n

\"Bruce,<\/a>
Director Bruce Garnett (Courtesy San Diego Opera)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

\u201cWe\u2019re trying to enhance people\u2019s mood and experience through lighting,\u201d Bruce said. \u201cWe have strong reactions to different uses of color.\u201d<\/p>\n

While Moore has played Cio-Cio-San for both Germany\u2019s Hamburg State Opera (Hamburgische Staatsoper) and New York\u2019s Metropolitan Opera, Bruce hopes that San Diego theatergoers do not compare her upcoming performance to her previous portrayals of the central character.<\/p>\n

\u201cEverybody who comes needs to have an open mind,\u201d he said. \u201cThey need to be ready to hear and see a new side of a familiar role.\u201d<\/p>\n

According to Bruce, one of the biggest reasons the intense plot continues to make an impact with audiences is the depth of the Cio-Cio-San character.<\/p>\n

\u201cShe is very na\u00efve, pragmatic, and trusting,\u201d he said. \u201cWe all want to be as good as she is throughout the opera. We want to believe the way she believes and if we can, we\u2019re open to joy.\u201d<\/p>\n

Similarly to Bruce, Bridges said she feels that the plot has a heart-rending quality.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt is a very humanistic story,\u201d she said. \u201cThere are real human emotions from everyone.\u201d<\/p>\n

With Bruce at the helm, it seems like audiences are in for a grand and passionate rendition of the monumental tale. His version appears to contain all the necessary ingredients to comprise a stirring evening.<\/p>\n

\u201cMadama Butterfly\u201d will be performed Apr. 16 \u2013 24, at the San Diego Civic Theatre, located at 1100 Third Ave., Downtown. For tickets or more information, visit sdopera.org<\/a> or call 619-232-7636.<\/p>\n

\u2014David Dixon has been a fan of film and theater from a very young age, and has written reviews and features for various print and online publications. Reach him at daviddixon0202@gmail.com.<\/em><\/p>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

By David Dixon Garnett Bruce \u2014 director of the famed Opera de Montreal \u2014 returns to Downtown San Diego later this month to present Giacomo Puccini\u2019s Italian opera, \u201cMadama Butterfly.\u201d This will be the fourth time Bruce has staged the tragic story for the San Diego Opera and its fans.<\/p>","protected":false},"author":819,"featured_media":238392,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_seopress_robots_primary_cat":"","_seopress_titles_title":"Opera: a tragic marriage in Nagasaki","_seopress_titles_desc":"","_seopress_robots_index":"","jnews-multi-image_gallery":[],"jnews_single_post":[],"jnews_primary_category":[],"jnews_social_meta":[],"jnews_override_counter":[],"footnotes":""},"categories":[11549,11547,11600],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-238391","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-arts-entertainment","category-features","category-sdnews"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/test.sdnews.com\/es\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/238391","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/test.sdnews.com\/es\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/test.sdnews.com\/es\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/test.sdnews.com\/es\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/819"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/test.sdnews.com\/es\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=238391"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/test.sdnews.com\/es\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/238391\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/test.sdnews.com\/es\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/238392"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/test.sdnews.com\/es\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=238391"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/test.sdnews.com\/es\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=238391"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/test.sdnews.com\/es\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=238391"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}