If you’re going to fall in love with opera, there’s a very good chance Giacomo Puccini will be the one who does it. He’s the most performed opera composer in the world, and for good reason — his music grabs you by the throat and doesn’t let go. He wrote melodies so beautiful they hurt, and he told stories about real people in recognisable emotional situations. Love, jealousy, sacrifice, loss. The big stuff.

I’ve been asked “where should I start with opera?” hundreds of times, and my answer almost always begins with Puccini. Here’s your roadmap.

Start Here: La Bohème

If you see only one Puccini opera in your life, make it La Bohème. It’s the story of young, broke artists in 1830s Paris — their love affairs, their friendships, their struggles. It’s funny in the first half and devastating in the second. The music is endlessly beautiful, the characters feel real, and the whole thing runs about two and a half hours including interval.

The reason Bohème works so well as an entry point is that it doesn’t require you to accept any weird operatic conventions. Nobody is disguised as someone else. Nobody stabs anyone over a misunderstanding. It’s just people falling in love and dealing with life, set to some of the most gorgeous music ever composed.

The big arias — “Che gelida manina,” “Sì, mi chiamano Mimì,” “Quando m’en vo” — are famous for a reason, but it’s the ensembles and the orchestral writing that really make this opera soar. If you don’t cry in Act IV, check your pulse.

Opera Australia stages Bohème regularly, and it’s almost always a strong production. If you can’t get to a live performance, the 2008 Anna Netrebko/Rolando Villazón film version is widely available and very good.

Next: Tosca

Once Bohème has you hooked, Tosca is the natural next step. It’s a thriller — set during a single day in Rome in 1800, involving a painter, a singer, a corrupt police chief, a political prisoner, and more plot twists than a Netflix series. There’s a torture scene, a murder, an execution, and a suicide. All in three acts.

Tosca is Puccini at his most dramatic. The score is cinematic before cinema existed — the opening three chords are one of the most arresting beginnings in all of music. The role of Tosca herself is one of the great soprano roles, demanding vocal power, dramatic intensity, and the ability to make “Vissi d’arte” (one of the most famous soprano arias ever written) feel spontaneous rather than like a concert piece wedged into a drama.

It’s compact, it’s exciting, and it moves fast. Perfect for anyone who thinks opera is boring.

Then: Madama Butterfly

This is where Puccini breaks your heart most thoroughly. Butterfly tells the story of Cio-Cio San, a fifteen-year-old Japanese girl who marries an American naval officer, waits years for him to return, and discovers he’s moved on. It’s a devastating portrait of cultural exploitation and misplaced faith.

Fair warning: this opera is emotionally brutal. The final act is almost unbearably sad. But it contains some of Puccini’s most exquisite music — “Un bel dì” is perhaps his single most beautiful aria, and the orchestral interlude depicting the passage of time is breathtaking.

Butterfly also raises legitimate questions about cultural representation that modern productions are increasingly grappling with. Who sings the role? How is Japanese culture depicted? These conversations are worth having and don’t diminish the power of the music.

For the Adventurous: Turandot

Turandot is Puccini’s grandest, most ambitious opera — and his last, left unfinished at his death in 1924. Set in ancient China, it’s the story of a cruel princess who executes any suitor who can’t answer her three riddles. It features the most famous tenor aria in the world (“Nessun dorma”), massive choral scenes, and orchestration on a scale Puccini never attempted elsewhere.

It’s spectacular, but it’s not where I’d start. The characters are less relatable than in Bohème or Tosca, the Orientalism is problematic, and the ending (completed by another composer after Puccini’s death) has always been debated. Save it for when you’ve got a few Puccinis under your belt and want something bigger.

The Hidden Gems

Once you love the big four, there’s more to explore:

Il trittico — a triple bill of three one-act operas: Il tabarro (dark thriller), Suor Angelica (religious tragedy), and Gianni Schicchi (comedy). Schicchi is one of the funniest operas ever written, and “O mio babbino caro” comes from it.

La rondine — Puccini’s most underrated work. Think of it as Bohème’s sophisticated older sister. Gorgeous melodies, bittersweet story, and rarely performed, which means catching a live production is a treat.

Manon Lescaut — Puccini’s first big success, preceding Bohème by three years. Raw, passionate, and full of extraordinary music.

How to Watch

If you can see Puccini live, do it. No recording captures the physical experience of a Puccini climax in a theatre — the way the sound fills the room, the way the orchestra swells under a soprano’s high note. It’s one of the great experiences in live performance.

If you’re starting with recordings, look for versions featuring great singing actors, not just great voices. Puccini needs performers who make you believe the drama, not just admire the technique.

The Met Opera on Demand streaming service has excellent productions of all the major Puccini operas, and it’s a good investment if you’re getting serious about exploration.

Welcome to Puccini. You’re going to love it here.