“I was driving home from a particularly moving performance of “Madama Butterfly, and could not get the image of the final tableau out of my mind,” Anthony told OperaWire. “I kept thinking, ‘What happens to the boy? What happens to Dolore? What happens to Sorrow? Because of this, ‘Sorrow’ begins with the echo of Pinkerton’s final cries of ‘Butterfly’ and ends with Sorrow and Pinkerton on opposing sides of the attack on Pearl Harbor. World events leading up to December 7, 1941 provide the backdrop to Sorrow’s journey. Hopefully, readers will come away with a sense of how the characters navigate the global cultural conflicts of the early twentieth century, as well as Sorrow’s personal journey. I also hope that readers simply enjoy the lyric narrative and continuation of the legacy of Cio-Cio-san.”