When Puccini was inspired to write Madama Butterfly, he was at the peak of his fame, idolized as the composer of three great operatic successes, Manon Lescaut, La Bohème, and Tosca. His inspiration was a London production of David Belasco's American play Madam Butterfly, in whose poignant love story Puccini saw the elements that invariably drew his interest as a composer: a strong theatrical situation involving a heroine in distress.

With his librettists Illica and Giacosa, Puccini began work...