The London-based team that swept the Tonys for Red  — director Michael Grandage, designer Christopher Oram and Neil Austin — joins Houston Grand Opera for Madame Butterfly in their first production for a U.S. opera company. The opera features Maria Martínez performing the pivotal role of  Cio-Cio San for the first time and the HGO debuts of tenor Joseph Calleja (Pinkerton), baritone Levi Hernandez (Sharpless), and mezzo-soprano Lucy Schaufer (Suzuki).

The opera tells the tragic story of a geisha in love with an American lieutenant. It is Giacomo Puccini's most popular opera and includes notable pieces such as "Un bel di," "Ancora un passo," "Viene la sera," and "Addio fiorito asil."