![the diplomat and the spy in a casual moment](/large-wpimages/arts/2014/10/m-butterfly-dipomat-and-spy.jpg)
David Henry Hwang's play is inspired by Puccini's opera "Madama Butterfly." In his revisioning it's a French civil servant instead of an American naval officer. It's China not Japan. The involvement is passionate instead of convenient and the "lady" is a far more formidable figure.