The Woman Who Loved Too Much: the story of Puccini's Madama Butterfly, in 8 pictures.

Lieutenant Benjamin Franklin Pinkerton is on a Japanese posting with his ship, the USS Abraham Lincoln.

While he's in Japan, he decides to set up home in a little house on the hill with a marriage of convenience to a young Japanese girl. Taking advantage of lax Japanese divorce laws, he intends that this dalliance will end when he heads back to the US to look for a proper American wife. He sets this up with the connivance of the local marriage broker, Goro: the beautiful and sought-after Cio-Cio-San (Butterfly) will be his 15-year-old bride.

Pinkerton confides his plans to the American consul, Sharpless, a decent man and a reluctant collaborator who warns against toying with the affections of a vulnerable young girl.

Although she will be married in full, traditional Japanese style and dress, knowing that she is to wed an American, Butterfly has already adopted Western clothes for herself, as Sharpless and Goro note.

Unbeknown to Pinkerton at this stage, Butterfly has renounced her Buddhist religion to embrace the Christian God of her husband-to-be. There will be trouble ahead...

Butterfly's friends assemble for the formal Japanese wedding ceremony. Pinkerton's view is that "This is a farce: all these will be my new relatives for only a month." What drives him on is that he is completely captivated and entranced by Butterfly's beauty and grace.

Unfortunately, the ceremony is interrupted by the arrival of Butterfly's uncle, the Bonze, who is a Buddhist priest. He's heard that Cio-Cio-San has abandoned her religion, and publicly curses both the couple's union and the guests.

Butterfly's maid, Suzuki, dresses her mistress for her wedding night. Although wounded by her uncle's curses, Butterfly has fallen in love across the cultural chasm, becoming helpless in devotion and duty to her new American husband. Pinkerton's fallen in lust, but could his cynical feelings turn to real love?

Butterfly has heard that in other countries, men catch butterflies and pin their wings open. "That's so she won't fly away," Pinkerton tells her. "I have caught you. You are mine."

"Yes, for life," she replies, unaware of Pinkerton's dishonourable intentions...

Three years pass. Pinkerton has carried out his plan and abandoned Butterfly. Originally he intended not only to leave her, but also to renege on the lease of the little house. In fact he left money with Sharpless to pay the rent, and this money is about to run out.

But this is enough to convince Butterfly that Pinkerton will return, in spite of Suzuki's assertions that American husbands never come back, and the entreaties of both Sharpless and Goro for Butterfly to marry rich Prince Yamadori instead.

"One fine day," the heartbroken but devoted Butterfly responds, "his ship will come."

Suddenly, it does.

Butterfly asks Suzuki to deck the house with flowers; she changes into her wedding kimono and stays up all night to wait for Pinkerton.

When he arrives, she will introduce him to their young son...

Butterfly is asleep. Pinkerton arrives with Kate, his new American wife, and Sharpless. Suzuki is mortified, not least when Sharpless explains that the couple plan to take the child away, and Kate will bring him up.

Pinkerton looks at the flowers and the house, unchanged since he left it. He finally realises what he has done.

He scarpers.

Butterfly appears and takes the situation in. Kate asks her forgiveness. Butterfly says she will give up her son, but Pinkerton must return in half an hour. Kate and Sharpless leave, and Butterfly breaks down.

Butterfly dismisses Suzuki, and prays to her old God, the Buddha.

She takes down her father's ceremonial blade from the wall, kisses it and reads the inscription, "Who cannot live with honour must die with honour".

Her son comes in. She tells him not to feel sorrow for her desertion, and to remember her face.

She blindfolds him, and gives him a little American flag to wave when his father arrives.

Butterfly stabs herself. She kisses her son for the last time.

Pinkerton arrives, crying, "Butterfly, Butterfly!"

He's too late. She's dead.

The images are by Brescia e Amisano © Teatro alla Scala from the company's production of Puccini's Madama Butterfly, broadcast on BBC Radio 3 at 2pm on Thursday 26 January, 2017. With Maria José Siri (Cio-Cio-San/Madame Butterfly), Bryan Hymel (Pinkerton), Carlos Alvarez (Sharpless), Carlo Bosi (Goro), Annalisa Stroppa (Suzuki), Nicole Brandolino (Kate) and the Orchestra and Chorus of La Scala conducted by Riccardo Chailly.