"Opera has captured me in a way that seems really familiar, said Cuizon, who recalled hearing some of the genre's most popular hooks and leitmotifs as a child through movies and cartoons. I remember hearing the Habanera' from Carmen' and that felt very familiar. Once I got to really know and interact with opera, it felt like I was rediscovering my childhood, which music was such a part of because it really was everywhere."
"Puccini's 1904 masterpiece is set in Japan, where American naval Lt. Pinkerton searches for a girl to gallivant with in the Far East. He meets the 15-year-old Cio-Cio San, which translates to butterfly, and proceeds to have what he believes is an unserious marriage, a connection she is taking with the utmost seriousness. When Pinkerton returns three years later with his new American wife, despite Cio-Cio-San awaiting her husband's return, she feels there is no other choice but to commit suicide."
Michelle Ainna Cuizon grew up in the Philippines surrounded by music and karaoke, absorbing operatic hooks through movies and cartoons. She moved to New York City to pursue directing studies after singing choral music in Manila. Cuizon completed a two-year residency in San Jose and returned to Opera San Jose as guest director for Puccini's Madama Butterfly. Madama Butterfly centers on Lt. Pinkerton and the 15-year-old Cio-Cio San, whose tragic fate follows Pinkerton's return with an American wife. The opera's popularity coexists with controversies about race and cultural appropriation, and Cuizon seeks a more culturally competent, personal staging while confronting discomfort with the ending.
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