Mozart's The Magic Flute (DVD)

...'The Magic Flute', Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart's popular opera. Created in that highly disciplined world of specialized vocal and instrumental music and theatre, it remains among the lightest in the genre. The story amounts to little more than a children's tale with the usual elements of heroism, love, revenge, forgiveness, etc. Ah, but the most aurally pleasing music of Mozart elevates it to a higher plane.

From Arthaus Musik DVD comes ...
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Mozart's Sublime, Inspiring Music Delivered Beautifully.

Mozart employs a host of musical forms and styles here. With a variety of melodies, harmonies and rhythms appearing throughout the work, he brings a liveliness to the tale of heroism. Most of the music is written in the major keys, that is, in a bright and optimistic mood. To think that Mozart wrote this opera just a few months before his death on December ... more

Opera-haters may just succumb to the charms of this delightful stage version of 'The Magic Flute', Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart's popular opera. Created in that highly disciplined world of specialized vocal and instrumental music and theatre, it remains among the lightest in the genre. The story amounts to little more than a children's tale with the usual elements of heroism, love, revenge, forgiveness, etc. Ah, but the most aurally pleasing music of Mozart elevates it to a higher plane.

From Arthaus Musik DVD comes this modern, minimalist and playful production of Mozart's final operatic work, 'The Magic Flute / Die Zauberflöte', perfomed live on 26 August 1992 at the Ludwigsburger Schloßfestspiele.

Basic Plot Premise.

Our hero, Prince Tamino, is rescued from a giant serpent by the Three Ladies of the Queen of the Night. The Queen then requests that Tamino rescue her daughter, Pamina, from Sarastro's Sun Temple, in exchange for the promise of Pamina's hand in marriage. He receives a magic flute to aid him in the task. Meanwhile, Papageno, lily-livered birdcatcher to the Queen, has just been released from his punishment (here, a padlock on his mouth) for boasting about heroic deeds not his own. Advised not to lie again, he must now serve as companion and helper to Tamino on the latter's mission, for which he receives a set of magic bells from the Queen. We follow Tamino through the trials that test his mettle for possible inclusion in the Inner Circle of Knowledge of Sarastro's Sun Temple. Pamina's own hopes vis-a-vis the Moor Monostatos, The Queen of the Night, Sarastro and, of course, Tamino, as well as Papageno's search for his own "fair maiden" (not to mention food) form the rest of the plot. Of course, the tale concludes happily for our Tamino, Pamina, Papageno (who finds his Papagena at last), and Sarastro.

Unique Charms of This Production.

Alexander Lintl and Axel Manthey deserve applause for their larger-than-life, cardboard cut-out sets that are unequivocal about their meaning. Think of how a child would render a snake, a tree, the moon and stars, lightning and red flames--in huge sizes, basic shapes and solid colors. A large part of this production's appeal lies in the origami-like simplicity of representation of mundane objects and matter. (Hmm, I love minimalism in visual design--but rarely in music).

Examples of imaginative touches: when Prince Tamino holds up a portrait of Pamina received from the Three Ladies, a cool white light from the picture glows upon Tamino's face, while the rest of the stage remains in darkness. Through a few square holes cut out of the stage floor props and characters pop out or drop down. The slab-like stage goes completely dark between scene changes, with only the glowing, white horizontal band of the stage's front edge visible.

Sets and costumes have solid, eye-catching hues of white, red, blue, yellow and green. Makeup consists of whimsical splashes of color around the eyes. While all stagewear hew to minimalist principles, there is the occasional oddball costume or two. The bald-headed priests of Sarastro, Ruler of the Sun Temple (also hairless), wear white jackets done in the style of Nehru, with long white pants and black leather shoes. Sarastro's yellow jacket distinguishes him from his underlings. The notable resemblance of the Sun Temple Brothers to that nemesis of Austin Powers and his cat, Mr. Bigglesworth, may provoke giggles in some (although this production predates the Mike Meyers character by years!) Tamino's costume is an odd bird: a vaguely Oriental white robe bordered in gold, worn over white jodhpurs. He wears tall black leather boots at first, but later sheds them. Why? I think his barefootedness becomes important in the trials of fire and water en route to true heroism and love.

Pamina, our blonde damsel-sometimes-in-distress, appears in a boat-necked, velvety royal blue gown, and green jelly shoes (!). She also loses the shoes during Tamino's trial scenes.

The Three Ladies, emissaries of the Queen of the Night, first appear in glittery, skin-hugging suits divided diagonally into halves of royal blue and bright red that at times are almost comically sensual, and diaphanous blue veils. Their hairstyles recall the Thirties' women's fashion of short-haired curls. They have character counterparts in the Three Little Boys, prepubescent males in white shorts and soft hats, wearing stiff triangular wings strapped to their backs.

In a hugely impressive gown decorated with big yellow and white stars against a background of deep royal blue, the Queen of the Night virtually floats across the stage in a voluminous dome-shaped skirt the puffiest of which I've yet seen, measuring perhaps six feet across at the hem. When she comes onstage, she appears to emerge from the spray of stars sewn into the curtain downstage, which seem to continue onto her gown, in another example of this production's visual wit.

Reserved for Papageno is the liveliest get-up of all: a red cock's comb atop his head, a long, pointed red beak kept on his forehead by a thin headband, and patches of red, yellow and blue feathers on his shirt, with tan knickerbockers and a spray of white feathers sprouting from his behind. White socks and low-cut boots complete the impression of a boyish green-hat-and-lederhosen-clad Bavarian.

Mozart's Sublime, Inspiring Music Delivered Beautifully.

Mozart employs a host of musical forms and styles here. With a variety of melodies, harmonies and rhythms appearing throughout the work, he brings a liveliness to the tale of heroism. Most of the music is written in the major keys, that is, in a bright and optimistic mood. To think that Mozart wrote this opera just a few months before his death on December 5, 1791! Even more amazing, after largely completing 'The Magic Flute', he managed to start work on his 'Requiem', and also wrote 'La Clemenza di Tito' during a trip to Prague. He finalized 'Magic Flute' upon his return to Salzburg.*

Librettist Emanuel Schikaneder based the story on a mixture of a Viennese fairy tale, an Egyptian novel, as well as bits from Viennese folk theatre and freemasonry. The Sun Temple Brotherhood is an obvious reference to the Freemasons, of which both Mozart and Shickaneder were members.*

Under the direction of Wolfgang Gönnenwein, the Orchestra of the Ludwigsburger Schloßfestspiele performs with exhilarating vigor and excitement. Tenor Deon Van Der Walt possesses a fine, solid voice, playing Tamino with the seriousness of a fairy tale hero. Soprano Ulrike Sonntag gives an assured performance as Pamina, and despite her character's lack of dimensionality she gives us hints of human vulnerability in her portrayal. Andrea Frei as Queen of the Night acquits herself during those difficult coloratura passages in that infamous three-minute aria, 'Der Hölle Rache kocht in meinem Hertzen' (chapter 30). One tends to hold one's breath during that aria, fearing that the singer may stumble and fall in the midst of that high-wire vocal act. Of course, in these productions, they never do.

His jacket amazingly smooth and uncreased with each step, our Sarastro seems to suffer from a spinal problem: for some reason, Cornelius Hauptmann moves through his paces stiff as a board. Nonetheless, his sonorous bass pleases mightily.

Most memorable to many will be the fun-loving and silly Papageno, played with gentle, self-mocking humor by the beefy Thomas Mohr. His playful scenes and arias nicely balance the seriousmindedness of Tamino's heroic purpose. I especially enjoyed the cheerfulness in his self-descriptive aria, 'Der Vogelfänger ich bin ja'. (Chapter 4). His glockenspiel bells sound like a music box's magical tinkling, a genuine pleasure and comfort to hear.

The Three Ladies (Elizabeth Whitehouse, Helene Schneidermann and Renée Morloc) all sing wonderfully in unison and individually, their lilting deliveries graced with wit and humor. The little fellows playing the Three Little Boys sound just like little cherubs, vocally reminiscent of those Vienna Choir Boys.

Possible Minuses.

One must remember the context of the times in which 'The Magic Flute' was written, a time when political correctness was unknown. The "black men" in the story refers to the Moors (Arabs, probably North Africans), and Monostatos, the obviously lascivious Moor in Sarastro's realm, isn't exactly a model of probity or upstanding moral character. That the Moors would be played in blackface came as a surprise, with rather inappropriate costumes showing a leopard skin pattern, thus confusing the Moorish characters with the long-held stereotype of black Africans.

To his credit, librettist Schikaneder does give Monostatos an aria in which he, a black man, asks why he does not deserve to love a woman like the rest of the (white) men. However, the implied vileness of his desire for Pamina may create discomfort in modern audiences.

The DVD's technical quality leaves little to complain about, with the brilliant picture clarity and the crisp sound of digital stereo ensuring your full enjoyment of the show. The seamless camerawork takes you where it should--right where the action is. Extras are short, however, consisting only of a choice of German, English, French, Spanish and Japanese subtitles, and an 8-minute Arhhaus Musik trailer.

Final Words.

I highly recommend this whimsical production of 'The Magic Flute' to audiences new to the genre, as well as to lovers of Mozart's music, and to followers of the minimalist school of aesthetics. For the first time, I actually enjoyed the visual aspect of this opera. Before this, I'd seen only Ingmar Bergman's from 1975, and my youth may have precluded my appreciation of it then. Curiosity has got the better of me now, so it's onward to the Swedish language version of this work tout de suite!

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*From the DVD booklet.

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DVD Notes:

Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart

DIE ZAUBERFLÖTE'
Opera in Two Acts
Text by Emanual Schikaneder
Sung in German

Chorus and Orchestra of the Ludwigsburger Festspiele
Wolfgang Gönnenwein, Music Director

Stage Director
Axel Manthey

Sets and Costumes
Alexander Lintl / Axel Manthey

Menu languages: English, French, Spanish, Japanese
Subtitle languages: German, English, French, Spanish, Japanese
Running Time: 147 mins
Special Feature: ArtHaus Musik-Trailer

ArtHaus Musik DVD

© A Co-Production of SWF Baden-Baden / EuroArts Entertainment 1992

 

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