The Magic Flute

Taylor Oettel

Roundtree FXM-211

February 13, 2019

The Magic Flute

The opera “The Magic Flute” also known as “Die Zauberflöte” was written by Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart. Emanuel Schikaneder also contributed greatly to the composition of this opera, writing many of the spoken words, while Mozart wrote most of the musical parts. It premiered in 1791 at the Theater auf der Wieden near of Vienna. This theater was a venue for many theatrical works but unfortunately only open for fourteen years from 1787 to 1801. Overall, “The Magic Flute” played 223 times in that theater, a huge success and a very popular opera to see even now. It was such a success that Schikaneder made a sequel called the Magic Flute Second Part. On the surface it is a fairytale with problems arising a prince saving a princess, but in the end everyone is happy and everything ends well. However, underneath the initial storyline there is a more complex message. The music throughout is written in every conceivable style, Mozart uses the music to guide the personalities of the characters. Enhancing the scenes greatly just with his talent in creating music. Mozart created a work of art that is still popular in the modern world, with new and evolving performances happening all over the world.

The mise en place of “The Magic Flute” has differed throughout the multiple performances it has endured. Concerning the original performance spot at the Theater auf der Wieden it was a great place to perform. The theater was a structure that had very good acoustics, with a wood interior and brick exterior. It was three stories and two galleries or balcony levels. It was said to have held about 500 audience members and later could hold 1,000 after an expansion by Schikaneder. The typical set from original productions was very large classical designs and props really reenacting a royal setting and vibe. The setting of the performance I chose to watch was definitely modernized. There were a lot of moving parts, large mountain structures moving, people floating or flying above in many instances. There was a moon that came floating down to signify night time, as well as multiple background panels that helped change the scene. There was fog used a lot too when there were more mysterious moments happening. They also used fire on stage which I thought was interesting they didn’t think that was a hazard. I was also surprised to see that during one part of the opera they had three people floating above in a makeshift plane, this means that they technology they used for this must of been pretty advanced to be able to support three people in the air. Lighting wise there seemed to be a mix of low key lighting and high key lighting. It just depended on the scene and the mood of the scene that determined if it was more serious and dark or lighter and happier. The props they used really helped give the scene that extra essense it needed to make it more realistic. At one point they had all these animal structures that had great details and colors come out while Tamino, the prince was playing the flute. They were all on four wheels being rolled out which I thought could of been hidden a little better but it worked for the purpose of the scene.

So to start off explaining how the plot went we need to know the characters so to break it down first we have Tamino, who is the prince, pretty much one of the main characters throughout. Then there is Papageno who is a bird catcher and longing to be reunited with his love Papagena. Then there is the Queen of the Night who is against everyone pretty much gaining happiness because she can’t find it herself. Then there is Pamina, the daughter who Tamino ends up with on his quest to save her. Then there is Sarastro who is a evil high priest, and Monostatos who is the chief slave of the temple. Then throughout there is a this theme of triads, there are three ladies who are the Queen’s attendants, three boy spirits, three priest, and three slaves. So pretty much the Queen promises Tamino, Pamina’s hand in marriage if he helps save her from Sarastro capture. He is holding her captive in his tower. Many things occur between this that get quite complicated but bottom line is Sarastro puts Tamino and Papageno through a series of tests to gain their loves back. In the end they pass and everyone ends up with their love. The Queen and her handmaidens are banished into eternal darkness. Overall, it was a happy ending for this fairytale story.

My personal discoveries experiencing this opera were that it can be quite confusing at times. It seemed a little disconnected at times, if I had not had the background knowledge when viewing it would've been challenging to follow what exactly what happening. However, I enjoyed how you really could use the music as a guide what the characters were feeling or what the mood of the scene was. I actually liked the music which surprised me because I have never really watched an opera before or experienced it’s music fully. It was incredible how not only good singers these performers were but they could also act well at the same time. There was mixed dialogue during many parts also known as a singspiel. I think that the use of both music and dialogue helped get a further understanding of what was happening in a given scene. I also thought that it was interesting that there was the repeating number three. In my research I found out that this was due to the association Mozart, as well as Schikaneder had with Freemasonry. The theme stuck throughout the plot with the use of the three handmaidens, the three boys, and the three priest and three sales. There is also the fact that Mozart’s music represents this too, many of the musical numbers feature three cords or three stanzas too. Some other themes that can be seen are magical mystical elements coming from the magic flute itself that was used, being used as an instrument of magic. Then there is also the theme of love and how love prevails. There is the love story of Pamina and Tamino, also Papageno and Papagena, but love also comes to play with the Queen as well. At first you think she wants what’s best for her daughter she sets up a marriage for her, but by the end you know that a mother’s love sometimes doesn’t make a difference. The Queen in the end was spiteful and was jealous she didn’t find love and her daughter did, by the end she is outcast from their lives. The enlightenment can be also seen as a major theme especially taken account it’s historic content and composition era.

A video game that could be based on “The Magic Flute” in the 21st century, could be a adventure game where you have the option to choose your character or automatically it gives you a main character to be your avatar. The setting would be on a remote island with the castle as the main home base, then there are far off mountains, fields and jungle areas where the adventure will take place. The goal is to retrieve select items to bring back to the castle, but there are also seasons that you must take into account, rain or snow or heat. In the end the goal is to have Pamina and Tamino reunited and happy to rule the kingdom.

In concluding thoughts I enjoyed watching this opera because of the music but the plot could be quite confusing throughout. It was interesting to see how they use their voices and expressions to really get the story across. I think that people who watched this first maybe didn’t recognize all the more complex themes that have been dissected in modern day. They must of seen it as just a fairy tale with a happy ending. I think that it would be interesting to see what types of  productions could be put on completely modernized with the same story line but the mise en place completely different with no classical parts in it at all.

Works Cited

Operavore;Plotkin, Fred, The Eternal Appeal of Mozart's “The Magic Flute” New York Public Radio, (2015)

Pluterro, “W.A Mozart: The Magic Flute with English subtitle(complete)”, Nov 9, 2017, YouTube.

Schwarm, Betsy;Linda Cantoni; “The Magic Flute” Encyclopedia Britannica (2015)