Evening star., 1940-10-27

the poor little creature, 1Or IN
every phrase she sings he has found
music TO emphasize her naive charm
and make doubly heartless the
wrongs she suffered.
In little house on hill, sur
rounded by gay garden where
cherry trees bloom in profuSion, he
begins his story. Here the little
maiden comes truStfully, attired in
wedding finery and with chattering,
colorfm attendants, to marry the
American naval lieutenant, B. F.
Pinkerton. Although denounced by
her uncle, the priest, for choosing
one not of her kind, she tells her
deep love to her husband as the
night shadows fall and below. in
Nagasaki harbor. the lights begin to
twinkle, in a duet of surprising
beauty.
Here, too. three years later, she
reiterates her faith in his return in
the famous aria, I'm bel di,' with
its triumphant finish, He will re-
turn, l know it" From the terrace
she searches for the battleship,
Abraham Lincoln whose booming
gun announces its arrival and runs
to deck the dainty room and her
husbands comfortable chair the
only Western furniture among the
pillows and tabouretS of Japan, with
flowers for the reunion which the
ships gun presages. Here, too, at
the closed windows of the terrace
she stands the weary night through,
her baby and her servant overcome
with sleep beside her, waiting.
L. s. Premiere Was Here
The finish Of the second act and
the beginning of the third are
some of the most poignant moments
of opera The lamps have gone out
and daylight Creeps in as, in
troubled wonder, she carriers her
sleeping baby to bed softly sooth-
ing him with a lullaby. Under the
cherry trees from which few hours
earlier she shook the blossoms in
gay abandon, appears modish fig
ure, an American girl No need to
tell Cio-Cio-San that this is the
real wife Of her husband, her heart
has already told her the sad truth.
When the American wife, backed
by the consul. callously demands the
child so that he can be brought up
an American, she knows the end
has come.
Without thought of rebellion. she
asks to be left alone and makes her
preparations. Placing an American
flag in the baby's hands and blind
folding him, she takes the sword
her father used for his death at the
Emperor's command, and on which
is engraved Death with honor is
better than life with diShonor' and
kills herself. Useless is the remorse,
now, of 1t Pinkerton and useless,
too, all the gallant faith of the little
geisha girl. East is East and West
is West and never the twain shall
meet" =,
In many respects the opera is too
finely drawn, too marvelously worked
out in detail for the average opera
goer to grasp. The many high points
Of the work are vel known and
loved but there are many small pas
sages of rare beauty such as can
be found in no other musico-dra-
matte opus. 1t is just this fine de-
tailed sketching that has proven the
attraction to singers who, if they are
especially skilled in voice shading
and in action, can project them for
the greater appreciation of the au-
dience.
Soon after its success was estab-
lished in Europe, Henry Savage
formed a company to present it in
an English version. 1t is interest
ing to note that the highly success
full tour was inaugurated in WASH
ington where the first presentation
of Madame Butterfly in America
took place at the Columbia Theater.