One of the events to feature in the bicentenary celebrations of the Teatro Real de Madrid will be a live countrywide broadcast of Madame Butterfly, by Giacomo Puccini.

The opera will take place at 9.30pm on Friday 30 June and one of the many venues that will show the transmission will the la plaza de Ramón Sijé in Orihuela.

The Department of Culture will erect a giant screen in the square, located in the heart of Orihuela Old Town, and there will be plenty of chairs so anyone who wants to go along and enjoy this magnificent Puccini work may do so absolutely free.

The Councillor for Culture, Mar Ezcurra, said that “It is an exceptional opportunity for Oriolanos to enjoy one of the greatest operas of all time and at the same time participate in one of the great cultural events of this year in our country, the bicentennial of the Royal Theatre.

Set in Nagasaki, Japan in the early 1900s, Madam Butterfly is one of opera’s most enduring tales of unrequited love. Puccini’s poignant score follows the tragic tale of Cio Cio San, a young Japanese girl who falls in love with American naval officer Pinkerton, with devastating consequences.