Ellen Kent's Madama Butterfly Reviews

Colin Joseph Carmelo Smart from Newcastle Upon Tyne,

A BRILLIANT PRODUCTION

I have no time for those who go to the opera to be awed by the sets, the size of the chorus and orchestra and forget that opera is about communicating emotions through voice. I have viewed productions at the Royal Opera House London live and cinema relay and several productions on relay from the Met and dvd and for once we were able to experience credible looking, acting and singing leads at a price from a one day at a time an opera touring company which makes use of local as well as International resources and which received one of the most positive response from the Saturday night audience at the Sunderland Empire. Those of now used to seating in refurbished cinemas find the seating cramped and difficult to get in and out but the view across the stage from one end row at the side with no one sitting next was better than past Riyal Opera House. Ice creams at £4 excessive but on a very cold night the coffee was suitably hot.

Ricardo from Brighton,

MADAME BUTTERFLY - AWESOME

I loved it, the cast were great and you have to admit that there isn't that much of a storyline but the singing was superb. I really liked that there was subtitles for the Italian lyrics. The highlight was the Ukrainian cast singing their national anthem and holding the flag and thanking the British public for supporting them. Very moving and brought the whole war situation close to home. So much compassion for the Ukrainian people.

Andy Diver from London, England

CIAO CIO SAN HEARTBREAKINGLY BEAUTIFUL

Wimbledon 1st April. Got off to a nervous start..small orchestra sounded small ..Male openers speaking rather than singing..the appearance of Butterfly transformed the production..confidence spread to all the performers,the small numbers in the pit came to life in a magnificent show of fullness and musicality. Met,Covent garden,LA Scala..you won't see better

Gareth Edwards from Chester England

GREAT OPERA TERRIFIC PERFORMANCE

I saw it in New Brighton. The set was not cheap or tawdry as suggested by some reviewers but was entirely appropriate and the central building was essential to the staging. The costumes were authentic. Elena Dee gave a wonderful performance singing and acting Butterfly and was entirely believable. The Ukrainian orchestra was spot on. Italic Liskovetskyi was a bit old for Pinkerton but so what? Dragons was excellent as the consul as was Irina Sproglis as Suzuki. We are very lucky to have talent of this quality brought to us in the provinces at affordable prices. The audience loved it.

from London, England

REALLY LOVED THIS SHOW

I thought for myself it was just great in every conceivable way, feel a bit bad for booing the male villain and his wife at the end. I had been pulled into the story

Mike Schofield from Lincolnshire, England

BREATHTAKING PERFORMANCE

Saw Ellen Kent’s Madama Butterfly at Leicester’s De Montfort Hall on Saturday 25 March 2023.. Alyona Kistenyova as Cio-Cio San was superb, her singing and acting being pure perfection. She was supported by an excellent cast, especially Vitalii Liskovetskyi as Pinkerton and Natalia Matveeva as Suzuki, both with wonderful voices. The use of a local child as Sorrow was such a clever idea and much appreciated by the audience. The set was good and provided the backdrop for the wonderful performances to transport you to Japan. The dastardly American sailor Pinkerton got the customary booing at the end but the rapturous applause for the production justly reflected the outstanding performances. Well done Ellen Kent for bringing the Ukrainian Opera and Ballet Theatre to us.

Sharon from London, England

WIMBLEDON THEATRE

Wonderful performance by everyone..fantastic orchestra. Emotional but beautiful..Sorrow was fabulous for one so young. Customary booing at end for Pinkerton followed by applause and fantastic support for Ukraine national anthem. Well done people!

Sean Currie from London, England

AN UNFORGETTABLE EVENING IN WIMBLEDON!

After a decidedly indifferent Madama Butterfly at the Royal opera House many years ago it has taken me a long time to finally give this particular opera another try, and am I glad I did. Opera can be very subjective, but for me this was a definitive Cio Cio San. Elena Dee was nothing short of sensational, both in her singing and her acting. Her voice soared at times without ever faltering, her range impressive and her tone beautiful. The ovation she received at the end showed that most of the theatre were in complete agreement. But it was far from a one person show. The rest of the principal parts were also impressive, the staging simple which allowed the characters to take the focus. Touring sets can never replicate those of resident productions, but this was a good effort, and the use of lighting was very clever. The orchestra was almost flawless and understood their role perfectly, never once trying to upstage the singers. Ellen Kent does a wonderful thing bringing top class opera to the masses, with local venues and very affordable prices. I look forward to her 2024 tour with great anticipation. And as a footnote, never has the Ukrainian anthem sounded so good.

from Oxford,

THURSDAY 18TH PM SHOWING

I am but an amateur, to say the least. But one should only say what one sees. An immaculate presentation. It was a small theatre, I was sitting in a stall seat, row K28. I was spellbound by the modest, yet impressive talent. When there was humour, when there was tragedy and when there was sheer intimacy with those on stage and those sitting on seats it was raw and real. it was talent it was sheer worth every penny. Loved it and even cried when they brought on the child. Well done to the cast and producer and Ellen Kent.

Linda Boyd from Sheffield, England

MADAMA BUTTERFLY

Excellent

Jim Maxwell from Glasgow

WONDERFUL BUTTERFLY

A fabulous production in the Glasgow Concert Hall. The performance of Butterfly herself was the finest I've seen, an actress and singer of the highest quality. The curtain call with the Ukrainian flag was heartwarming. Well done Ellen for bringing this amazing production to us.

Andy Mackay from Brighton,

HUGELY ENJOYABLE BUT SOMEHOW SLIGHTLY LACKING

This is the sixth performance of Madam Butterly I have seen and it’s was good, but by no means great. Don’t misunderstand me, it was hugely enjoyable, still made me tear up in all the right places and I left feeling like I’d been through the wringer, however there were a few bits that just left me feeling like it’s been a long tour for this production. Butterfly herself was good vocally and certainly delivered the best acting performance I have ever seen for the role (if you place value in such things) but at times I felt like some of the singing from various characters was ‘just clocking in’ rather than coming from the depths of the soul and the humming chorus was hummed so quietly that my non-opera loving wife didn’t even realise that it was being hummed at all. Certainly didn’t leave disappointed but somehow felt like I’d been served slightly small portions.

Stephanie Turner from London, England

CHARMING MME BUTTERFLY

Sad to see such negative reviews for a production that I thought was West End standard singing on a provincial budget. It’s easy to sneer at the set but my friend and I thought it rather lovely, especially considering this is a whistle-stop UK tour of one-night stands. Madame Butterfly conveyed such innocence and fragility that when taking bows at the end the American Pinkerton was booed for his dastardly treatment of her - rightly so! The female chorus was lovely but it has to be said the male chorus performed as if they’d just been plucked from the street. If this company decides to perform in Wimbledon again I would definitely go - it’s nice to support small productions with big ideas.

Yasuo Tanaka 康夫田中 from Newcastle Upon Tyne,

EXCELLENT LEAD AND SUPPORTING CAST SUNDERLAND EMPIRE

The Empire production was carried by the lead and supporting cast with the exception of the role of Goro, his voice did not convey to the audience and at times was quite mute. However, attention should be drawn to the cultural misappropriation in the way that the cast protrayed the image of "Japanese". The thin moustache drawn onto the faces of the male support cast is a depiction of "Chinese", additionally the long plaided pony tail worn by Goro similarly is not "Japanese". It would appear that these are props from the pantomime Aladdin, and while it is accepted that this is a touring company using the resources of a local theatre, perhaps they should do a little more research. Unless of course, "we all look the same".

D.Roffey from England

SURTITLES ARE AN ABOMINATION!

If I want a digital screen experience, I can watch opera at home on my mobile or tablet If I want opera in sung in English I can no doubt watch a different production live or at home However, I went to the opera to be absorbed by the experience in all it's live facets, to be delighted in the ambience of the threatre. I do not go to opera for a digital experience. The bright electronic screen with crude translations blinking at my eye level did nothing to enhance the experience. I had to resort to closing my eyes to avoid the intrusion of the vulgar screen. The sound of the opera sung in Italian is magnificent. Elena Dee was superb as was the Ukraninan performers The inital female chorus performance was disappointing the children were not singing and one in what looked like she was in her her school shoes In Act two, the surtitles subsided and the singing of the Ukrainian national anthema was very moving. Sadly there were some disruptive members of the audience sitting next to us :(

Mike Hutchby from Derbyshire

A VALIANT EFFORT

This is a challenging role met with a valiant effort. Well done Madama. The cast did well. But there are some buts. The set was reminiscent of the entrance to a garden centre bedecked with plastic flowers and the hut placed centre stage left the performers with little space to perform. It was reminiscent of a Carry On movie. Just terrible. The baby boy blindfolded and holding an American flag also struck a jarring and eerie note in today’s world. The most notable event of the evening however was the booing at curtain call for Pinkerton. A rich American trampling the world and running off with the spoils was not well received. How things are changing.

Pv from London, England

AM DRAM

We were so looking forward to seeing this production of Madame Butterfly but as soon as the curtain went up and you saw the set and already we were alarmed. The set looked like a cheap B and Q foyer with a large hut central to the stage. The drama was essentially about how many times they could open and close the sliding doors. Very cheap production, terrible lighting, cheap costumes and terrible direction that there was laughter at times there shouldn’t have been. So disappointing, an exercise in how not to put on a production of such a well loved opera.

Aloysious from London, England

NEVER REALLY GETS OUT OF 2ND GEAR AND DELIVERS

The whole production never really gets its act together and I found the leading singers very lacking. Normally I can't help but cry during this opera but alas tonight I left with dry eyes which was is really quite a damning indictment...

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