Madama Butterfly on Sydney Harbour is set to open this Friday, 24 March, and run until 23 April. This year’s production promises to be a breathtaking experience with stunning views of Sydney Harbour, pop-up drinks and dining under the stars, a spectacular performance, and fireworks.
Revolutionary Spanish theatre company La Fura dels Baus, led by director Alex Ollé, created this production, and it premiered to great acclaim in 2014, exceeding 42,5000 in attendance and breaking all previous box office sales for Handa Opera.
Madama Butterfly, one of the world’s most-loved operas by Italian composer Giacomo Puccini, is a 20th Century opera with beautiful melodies and based on the same heartbreaking tale as the hit musical Miss Saigon. Puccini was known for putting great sorrows in little souls.
The mind-boggling details behind the Sydney production
The overwater harbour stage is almost two and a half times larger than any other Australian indoor stage. Building it takes a team of at least 150 people, and once constructed, it is lifted by two cranes onto pylons in the water to create the seemingly ‘floating’ stage. Throughout the performance, the stage is accessed via a floating walkway.
This year’s production features a cast of seventy-one, featuring a principal cast of twenty and fifty-one ensemble members. Including the orchestra and creative, the total production boasts over 200 members.
The grassy hill in Act 1 is covered with thirteen hundred squares of artfully trimmed artificial grass overlooked by a bamboo grove, made from real bamboo grown in northern NSW. The entire pop-up site is built in about 25 days, with the bulk happening in the first two weeks and cast and creatives arriving for rehearsals from Day 15.
From La Fura dels Baus to Sydney Harbour: The Revival of a Classic Opera
Conductor Brian Castles-Onion and the Opera Australia Orchestra members are housed in a custom-built orchestra studio named the ‘Underworld’ directly beneath the stage. The conductor maintains contact with the singers via in-ear monitors as well as TV monitors.
Approximately 800 glasses of sparkling wine are estimated to be sold each night, and over 26 performances, that’s almost 21,000 glasses! All onstage turf used in the production is recycled and reused.
More Fun Facts
- 1,920 man-hours in creating the costumes
- 24 wigs
- 200 hours of rehearsal time
- 2 cars are used for each performance – a taxi and town car
- 1 speed boat is required per performance
- 26 fireworks moments throughout the season (including general rehearsals)
- The Sun measures 12 metres in diameter, while the moon measures 6 metres.
