Claim: On 4 December 1948 the Tulsa Opera performed La traviata (an opera in three acts by Giuseppe Verdi), and in 1953, Madama Butterfly.
Evidence: On 4 December 1948, the organization performed Giuseppe Verdi's La traviata. By 1953, the company had renamed itself Tulsa Opera, and had given its fully professional production in November 1953, of Madama Butterfly, directed by Ralph Sassano, where professional singers were brought to Tulsa for all principal roles. La traviata (Italian pronunciation: [la traˈvjaːta; The Fallen Woman) is an opera in three acts by Giuseppe Verdi set to an Italian libretto by Francesco Maria Piave.