Matthew White on WNO's Madama Butterfly

The interview can also be heard on WETA Virtuoso on the following times:

11/11/2026 8:59PM
11/13/2026 4:57PM

And on WETA VivaLaVoce on the following times:

11/12/2026 10:02AM
11/15/2026 9:57AM

Matthew White, who’s currently singing the role of B. F. Pinkerton in Washington National Opera’s production of Puccini’s Madama Butterfly, didn’t start studying voice until he was nineteen. Before that he played several different instruments in a variety of styles and genres, though classical violin was what he assumed would be his main focus as his teens progressed and he thought about college and career. But when he decided to switch his attention to his voice, he dropped out of college and performed manual labor to support his voice lessons, focusing exclusively on technique for three years before considering repertoire. This bold move paid off; he went on to win a slew of competitions and enjoy a still-ascendant career. (You can find out more in my illuminating interview with him embedded above.) His performance as Pinkerton marks his WNO debut. 

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And what a debut it is! I had the privilege of attending the dress rehearsal. The WNO has transformed the cavernous DAR Constitution Hall into their “Revolutionary Stage”, designed by Walt Spangler, whose work has been seen at many DC venues. The orchestra is placed on the back of the stage in full view of the audience, while the action takes place on a thrust stage jutting out into the hall, surrounded on three sides by audience members sitting at tables where they can enjoy refreshments purchased at the bar, and get a very close look at some cast members who occasionally enter and exit through the audience. While I’ve seen the “immersive theatre” approach work well for comedies and experimental pieces, it was astonishing to see how well it worked for one of opera’s starkest and most period-specific tragedies. Madama Butterfly cannot be about anything except the clash of Japanese and American cultures in Nagasaki at the dawn of the 20^th century (during a panel discussion with the production’s creative team, the director E. Loren Meeker joked that “we’re not setting this on the moon in ape suits”), and they managed to conjure that period with evocative costumes by the legendary Broadway designer Florence Klotz. There was also beautiful dancing, choreographed by Kanji Segawa, that eloquently embodied Cio-Cio San’s emotional state in kinesthetic terms. The orchestra, put front and center as it should be, sounded magnificent under the baton of Erina Yashima. 

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In vocal terms Cio-Cio San was portrayed by Korean soprano Karah Son, who, like Matthew White, is making a powerful WNO debut in this production. Equally striking were the performances of longtime WNO stalwart Michelle Mariposa as Suzuki and the Grammy-winning Will Liverman as Sharpless. 

If you’ve never seen or listened to Madama Butterfly, it’s not much of a spoiler to say that it lacks a happy ending. But its ravishing catharsis epitomizes what opera is about – especially in a production such as this that combines solid musicianship and production values with a thrilling handmade quality as it seems to come to life right in front of you.