Puccini’s Madame Butterfly coming to San Antonio’s Tobin Center this week

Despite its dated gender and racial politics, Puccini’s Madame Butterfly — which Opera San Antonio will present this Thursday and Saturday at the Tobin Center for the Performing Arts — endures as an all-time classic due to its gorgeous music and devastating emotional impact.

The opera originated from the short story “Madame Butterfly” (1898) by John Luther Long, which told the convoluted tale of a Japanese woman’s unrequited love for a callous American naval officer. That work was based on stories told to Long by his sister mined from the semi-autobiographical French novel Madame Chrysanthème (1887) by Pierre Loti.

To further confuse the origin story, Long’s version was dramatized by David Belasco as a one-act play in 1900, which Puccini saw in London the summer of that year. Madame Butterfly is one of the great tragedies of the 20th century, not to mention one of the most-performed operas in the world. It’s sure to profoundly affect even the most callous of souls.

Opera San Antonio is presenting Madame Butterfly as part of its 10th anniversary season and in conjunction with the Orchestra San Antonio and Austin Opera.

$30 and up, 7:30 p.m. Thursday, April 17, and Saturday April 19, Tobin Center for the Performing Arts, 100 Auditorium Circle, (210) 223-8624, tobincenter.org.

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This article appears in Apr 2-15, 2025.