An Incredible Tale

 Based on an extraordinary true story, M. Butterfly details the affair between a French diplomat and a Chinese opera singer that was revealed to be an elaborate honeypot operation by the Chinese secret service. M. Butterfly opens with the diplomat in prison and plays out as a series of flashbacks of the relationship, which are beautifully entwined with allusions to Madama Butterfly as a way of exploring the troubling power dynamics between an 'all-powerful' West and a 'submissive' East.

Written by David Henry Hwang, M. Butterfly premiered on Broadway in 1988 and won three Tony Awards, including Best Play.

What is M. Butterfly About?

Disgraced and abandoned by all those who once loved him, imprisoned Rene Gallimard looks back at the events which put him behind bars. A former diplomat and married man, Gallimard was posted to the French embassy in Peking in the 1960s, where he laid eyes on Song Liling (played by Jin Ha), a Chinese opera star who would be his infatuation for the next twenty years, and ultimately his downfall.

The two began an affair, which they maintained for twenty years, during which time they were separated and then reunited once again in France. Yet the whole relationship was in fact an utter sham, a complex honeypot operation concocted by the Chinese intelligence services, who persuaded Gallimard to pass them secret documents in exchange for contact with Liling. The pair were eventually arrested in France for spying, and put to trial in court.