Scottish Opera: Madama Butterfly
On sale coming soon!
A new co-production with Irish National Opera
When the young Cio-Cio-San marries the handsome US Navy Lieutenant Benjamin Franklin Pinkerton, she gives up everything – after all, he has promised her a new life, and the warnings of her nearest and dearest seem trivial in the face of true love. Years later, she waits eagerly for his return and to introduce him to his son, but his arrival leads only to tragedy.
Puccini’s Madama Butterfly has moved audiences to tears for over a century, asking them to accept that Cio-Cio-San’s suffering is beautiful; that Pinkerton’s betrayal is inevitable; that a woman’s destruction is the price of a meaningful story. But this ‘Butterfly for the ages’ (The Arts Desk) refuses this bargain. The opera is reimagined as a journey through memory and identity by director Daisy Evans and designer Kat Heath (both Albert Herring 2024), with ‘stunning’ lighting by Jake Wiltshire and costumes by Catherine Fay. In their hands, Madama Butterfly becomes urgent and human – a meditation on what we inherit, what we conceal, and what it costs when the truth is finally brought to light.
Coming to Scotland after a triumphant run in Dublin, this production’s first-rate cast includes Sunyoung Seo (Il trittico 2023) as Cio-Cio-San, Andrés Presno as Pinkerton, Lea Shaw (L’heure espagnole 2025) as Suzuki, and Phillip Rhodes (La traviata 2024) as Sharpless.
Supported by The Alexander Gibson Circle Part of Scottish Opera’s 2026/27 Season Order Scottish Opera’s 2026/27 Season brochure>>
Become a Friend of Scottish Opera by Friday 22 May to enjoy access to priority booking and a 20% discount on tickets on selected productions from Thursday 14 May to Wednesday 27 May.
Cast & Creatives
Cio-Cio San: Sunyoung Seo, B F Pinkerton: Andrés Presno, Suzuki: Lea Shaw, Sharpless: Phillip Rhodes, Goro: Luvo Maranti, Kate Pinkerton: Yvonne Howard, Prince Yamadori: Daniel Barrett
Conductor: Stuart Stratford & Toby Hession, Director: Daisy Evans, Sets & Props Designer: Kat Heath, Costume Designer: Catherine Fay, Lighting Designer: Jake Wiltshire
The Orchestra of Scottish Opera The Chorus of Madama Butterfly
Pre-show talk
Get closer to the action and see into the minds of the creatives behind the production at the Madama Butterfly pre-show talk: Saturday, 19 June 2027, 3.45pm
Sung in Italian with English supertitles
Approximately 2 hours and 35 minutes including a 20-minute interval
A new co-production with Irish National Opera
When the young Cio-Cio-San marries the handsome US Navy Lieutenant Benjamin Franklin Pinkerton, she gives up everything – after all, he has promised her a new life, and the warnings of her nearest and dearest seem trivial in the face of true love. Years later, she waits eagerly for his return and to introduce him to his son, but his arrival leads only to tragedy.
Puccini’s Madama Butterfly has moved audiences to tears for over a century, asking them to accept that Cio-Cio-San’s suffering is beautiful; that Pinkerton’s betrayal is inevitable; that a woman’s destruction is the price of a meaningful story. But this ‘Butterfly for the ages’ (The Arts Desk) refuses this bargain. The opera is reimagined as a journey through memory and identity by director Daisy Evans and designer Kat Heath (both Albert Herring 2024), with ‘stunning’ lighting by Jake Wiltshire and costumes by Catherine Fay. In their hands, Madama Butterfly becomes urgent and human – a meditation on what we inherit, what we conceal, and what it costs when the truth is finally brought to light.
Coming to Scotland after a triumphant run in Dublin, this production’s first-rate cast includes Sunyoung Seo (Il trittico 2023) as Cio-Cio-San, Andrés Presno as Pinkerton, Lea Shaw (L’heure espagnole 2025) as Suzuki, and Phillip Rhodes (La traviata 2024) as Sharpless.
Supported by The Alexander Gibson Circle Part of Scottish Opera’s 2026/27 Season Order Scottish Opera’s 2026/27 Season brochure>>
Become a Friend of Scottish Opera by Friday 22 May to enjoy access to priority booking and a 20% discount on tickets on selected productions from Thursday 14 May to Wednesday 27 May.
Cast & Creatives
Cio-Cio San: Sunyoung Seo, B F Pinkerton: Andrés Presno, Suzuki: Lea Shaw, Sharpless: Phillip Rhodes, Goro: Luvo Maranti, Kate Pinkerton: Yvonne Howard, Prince Yamadori: Daniel Barrett
Conductor: Stuart Stratford & Toby Hession, Director: Daisy Evans, Sets & Props Designer: Kat Heath, Costume Designer: Catherine Fay, Lighting Designer: Jake Wiltshire
The Orchestra of Scottish Opera The Chorus of Madama Butterfly
Pre-show talk
Get closer to the action and see into the minds of the creatives behind the production at the Madama Butterfly pre-show talk: Saturday, 19 June 2027, 3.45pm
Sung in Italian with English supertitles
Approximately 2 hours and 35 minutes including a 20-minute interval
Where & when
No performances found.
Event data provided by DataThistle