Madame Butterfly

Sydney audiences were privileged to see Melbourne Dance Theatre’s version of Madame Butterfly as part of the Sydney Fringe Festival. The production, which premiered at the Adelaide Fringe, is not your traditional ‘pretty pretty’ version by any means; rather, it claims to be a fusion of contemporary and neo-expressionist dance.

Taking the story of John Luther Long’s book, made famous by the Puccini opera, this production tells the story in a pared down, almost abstract way, with minimal but very effective staging, impressive lighting, and a small cast. It is performed to a recorded soundtrack featuring the steady buzz of insects, rhythmic Japanese works and harsh, insistent drumming, and includes variations on two of the famous pieces from the Puccini opera: the humming chorus and ‘Un Bel Di’, as well as the Mendelsohn wedding march.

The cast is excellent and technically the dancing is terrific. However, there is little real character development. Sierra’s choreography is ballet-based to a degree (no pointe work though) yet there is a major ‘contemporary’ influence too. Influenced by the German Expressionist Dance background in a style they call ‘Ausdrucktanz’, it’s a mix of intricate partnering, fluid classical ballet and contemporary dance fusion, with lots of unusual acrobatic lifts in the pas de deux , some quite ‘Bolshoi’ in style, with sometimes gymnastic contortions in leg and upper body extensions and lots of rolling floor work. In the lifts there was an emphasis on the long sizzling line of the extended leg. Some of the choreography, however, was stilted and repetitive. The ensemble unison work was excellent and performed with great energy and commitment.

Visually the main theme was red. There was a very dramatic opening against a red floor and backcloth by Josh Twee – a powerful solo that included martial arts and breakdancing – and at Butterfly’s death she became a column of red, the cloth folded around her, Kabuki-like: visually, most exciting.

Cho Cho San (Butterfly) was exquisitely danced in a dynamic performance by Yuiko Masukawa. Pinkerton, clad in a blinding naval white uniform, was terrifically danced by Michael Pappalardo. Their duets were intriguing with some quite difficult lifts. Kristina Bettinotti as Suzuki was caring and supportive.

The ensemble of the Corps were also fine performers in their multiple roles. However , I found the final ‘Metamorphosis’ section, with all of the cast clad suddenly in black leotards with short white semi-transparent jackets, one moment performing cutting edge contemporary phrases of movement in the style of Lucy Guerin, and the next barefoot ballet in a cross between Giselle and La Bayadere a bit confusing and unsatisfactory. Were they all meant to be Butterfly’s spirit?

This aside, Melbourne Dance Theatre’s production was an intriguing, very different take on the famous story.