But its girlish coloration seems just right for most of Butterfly's music, and she handled the more dangerous parts (including a somewhat gingerly managed high option at the end of her entrance) with casually professional aplomb. Hers was never the kind of rich spinto voice that would have insured her a widespread international and recording career. Vocally, Miss Kirsten remains something of a technical marvel. Her Butterfly was full of authentic visual and dramatic detail (one assumes she brought her own costumes with her from her home in California), yet at the big moments, she knew how to court the public's applause without stepping out of the character as she (and Puccini) had conceived it. Miss Kirsten knows how to blend authentic japonaiserie with the necessary Italianate extroversion in this part. The American soprano is nearly four times Butterfly's supposed age at the beginning of the opera, but she does an excellent job, suggesting a proper dramatic illusion. 24-Dorothy Kirsten sang the title role in Puccini's “Madama Butterfly” at the War Memorial Auditorium here, last night, and it was a portrayal that elicited genuine respect.
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