A close-up of a woman's face looking sad.

Madama Butterfly

Beloved classic in a new setting

  • DATES:
    March 21 — May 27 2026
  • STAGE:
    Main stage
  • RUNNING TIME:
    approx. 2 hrs 45 mins
  • LANGUAGE:
    Italian, Swedish surtitles

One of two beloved Puccini operas of the 2025/2026 season — Madama Butterfly continues to fascinate audiences.

Moodbilder 2015 Festen, Kärleken, Döden Kriget Karolina Henkewebb.

This performance is not currently playing

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  • »a musical delight«

    SvD

  • »a conscious Madama Butterfly in many ways«

    DN

  • »A modern look at Madama Butterfly«

    Aftonbladet

  • »Dmytro Popov's Pinkerton is one of the most interesting I've seen«

    SvD

  • »Izabela Matula makes a Butterfly at the intersection of youthful naivety, denial and premature determination«

    DN

  • »Under the direction of conductor Daniel Carter, the Royal Swedish Orchestra also gets to play Puccini as beautifully as we recognize him«

    Aftonbladet

  • »dare to raise the issue of how colonialism's cultural vision is portrayed on stage«

    DN

One of the most beloved classical operas with impeccably beautiful music – but now is the time to dismiss Madama Butterfly’s romantic light. Cio-Cio San is a fifteen-year-old girl who is sold to an American officer, but she dreams of and believes in love until the bitter end. 
In director Sofia Adrian Jupither’s version, with its substantial dose of realism, the contrast between gentle music and hard reality becomes a heart-rending experience. 

Discover the full story

What really happens in Madama Butterfly? Follow the story of Cio-Cio-San and Pinkerton through three heartbreaking acts. Here you can read a summary of the opera's plot.

Read the synopsis here »

A close-up of a woman's face looking sad.

Performance images

  • Madama Butterfly 2026 6.
  • Madama Butterfly 2026 2.
  • Madama Butterfly 2026 7.
  • Madama Butterfly 2026 1.
  • Madama Butterfly 2026 5.
  • Madama Butterfly 2026 3.
  • Madama Butterfly 2026 4.

    Talk ahead of Madama Butterfly - how do we play classics today?

    Puccini's Madama Butterfly from 1904 is one of the opera world's most beloved works. How should we interpret and portray classics today? A conversation about concepts, stereotypes and the role of art in society. With Sofia Adrian Jupither (director), Tobias Hübinette (PhD in Koreanology and Associate Professor in Intercultural Education), Tobias Theorell (artistic opera) and Katarina Aronsson (dramaturge).

    Four people are sitting on chairs in an ornate room - they seem to be conversing with each other. Talk ahead of Madama Butterfly - how do we play classics today?
    • Cast
    • Music & creative team

      Music Giacomo Puccini
      Libretto Luigi Illica and Giuseppe Giacosa, after David Belasco
      Conductor Daniel Carter
      Director Sofia Adrian Jupither
      Scenography Erlend Birkeland
      Costumes Maria Geber
      Light Ellen Ruge
      Video Emi Stahl
      Dramaturge Katarina Aronsson
      Translation Nenne Runsten
      Chorus master Jori Klomp
      Intimacy Coordinator Malin B Erikson

    Cast subject to change.
    * student at the Stockholm University of Arts, opera

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