Combining animation and live singers makes for a hugely enjoyable and widely acclaimed experience. In this celebrated production created at the Komische Opera in Berlin, The Magic Flute is recast as a fantastic tale from the golden era of silent cinema. The precisely timed collaboration of live action and moving images brings an endless variety of fantastic riches to the stage.
The familiary story of Tamino seeking Pamina and Papageno pining for Papagena and of the struggle between darkness and light is all there, as is Mozart’s wonderful music. The story is more captivating than ever, with the spoken dialogue being replaced with animation and text.
Prince Tamino is chased by a giant snake and is rescued at the last moment by the three ladies of the Queen of the Night. When he wakes, he meets the carefree birdcatcher Papageno. Tamino and Papageno are given a mission by the Queen of the Night: they must rescue her daughter Pamina from the clutches of Sarastro. They are given a magic flute and magic bells to protect them. Papageno soon manages to save Pamina from Monostatos, but the two are captured. Fortunately Papageno’s magic bells render Monostatos and his soldiers harmless.
Tamino encounters the High Priest, and it begins to emerge that Sarastro is not the villain of the story after all. In order to join Sarastro’s brotherhood, Tamino must pass a series of ordeals. He is required to be silent, which Pamina interprets as rejection. In her despair she is about to take her own life, but the three boys step in. They reassure her that Tamino still loves her.
As the sun rises, the power of the Queen of the Night is dispelled. Papageno is reunited with Papagena and Tamino with Pamina.