Opera Scotland

Madam Butterfly 1944Sadler's Wells Opera

Read more about the opera Madama Butterfly

The Sadler's Wells visit in Autumn 1944 lasted four weeks, two each in Glasgow and Edinburgh. Tyrone Guthrie's production of Butterfly had been in the repertoire for each of the previous visits, and here had a further five performances, with the female roles double cast. The work was given on both opening Mondays and both closing Saturdays. Edinburgh also had a mid-week matinee. Guthrie's influence continued, with the Herald's critic noting enthusiastically that the company were 'applying the standards of spoken drama to opera.'

The repertoire was fairly conventional, with performances of Puccini (Bohème, Butterfly, Il tabarro & Gianni Schicchi), Mozart (Così fan tutte), Rossini (Barber of Seville), and Smetana (Bartered Bride). Tabarro and Così were the two novelties.

The abbreviated cast details are taken from reviews of the opening nights in the Herald (30 October) and the Scotsman (13 November).