Opera review: The Magic Flute
It sounds a garish decision, but setting Mozart’s Magic Flute in an subway station opens up a wonderful panoply of human drama.
The version of Magic Flute we are seeing in Adelaide is the product of the first ever collaboration between an Australian opera company and Chinese opera companies, and for that reason alone it arouses immediate interest. What makes it particularly intriguing, though, is that director Shuang Zou has set Mozart’s last opera in a Hong Kong subway.
Reinterpreting classics of the operatic canon is something we repeatedly see, but the angle that Zou takes opens up a panoply of new possibilities. On first glance, it seems a garish move to thrust Magic Flute into a bustling modern urban like an underground railway station, but what strikes one about Zou’s direction is her sympathy with this cherished work. Her decisions increase rather than decrease its fable-like quality.
Whizzing trains and mountain scenery are illustrated using anime techniques as if lifted out of a children’s storybook, and these are done with utmost skill by set designer Dan Potra, lighting expert Glen D’Haenens and videographer Marco Devetak. As the train sways and distorts, and faces appear in the mountains and clouds, one enters a dream-like world that tips Magic Flute into the realm of fantasy. That dream quickly turns into a nightmare as a lost, bewildered Tamino falls to the floor when a train morphs into a snarling serpent and chases him.
How to depict that serpent in Emanuel Schikaneder’s libretto, without descending into farce in Magic Flute’s opening scene, must rate as one of the larger directorial challenges in all opera; but Zou and her team have done it so cleverly that total enchantment takes hold from that very moment. The audience is drawn right in. Tamino’s promise to rescue the Queen of the Night’s daughter, Pamina from the evil Sarastro becomes a tale we are prepared to go along with.
Of course there’s also the Masonic symbolism to deal with, because Mozart, who converted to Freemasonry seven years before composing Magic Flute, is widely thought to have incorporated references this secret brotherhood in its music and staging. It is not an aspect to be overlooked, either: the journey Mozart takes us on, towards acceptance, spiritual truth and the fulfilment of human love, is one that Freemasonry upheld as a sacred rite of passage in Mozart’s day.
Zou goes lightly on the symbolism aspect itself, preferring to invest more in the opera’s allegorical power; and her production is the better for it. Each character undergoes trials but comes out the other end an enlightened person. A magic flute of Chinese origin holds central place in this production, and by means of its supernatural powers Tamino and Pamina earn the right to share their lives together, Papageno and Papagena tie the knot, and the two arch-enemies Sarastro and the Queen of the Night walk off hand in hand. It is all perfectly wonderful.
There are stellar performances from Zou’s cast. Nicholas Jones embodies all the shining optimism of the handsome prince Tamino, and his tenor is as clear as a bell. The arias Mozart writes for this lead male role are romantic, and Jones projects his voice with passion. Meanwhile, David Greco is the best Papageno imaginable: his speech-singing style delivery exactly matches the requirements of Singspiel, and his German diction is impeccable.
A thunderous Teddy Tahu Rhodes as Sarastro completes an impressive male triumvirate. The physical power of his bass is a thing to constantly marvel, and he has just the right amount of geniality to represent a bad guy who turns good in the end.
Filling in for an indisposed Sofia Troncoso, Stacey Alleaume makes a vivacious Pamina. She has a winningly light touch in this role, and a nicely rounded voice to match. For the Queen of the Night we have Danielle Bavli, and one of the most interesting things about the whole opera is how she turns from benign ruler to malevolent deceiver. Bavli navigates the transition convincingly, and although a little quiet of voice, she dispatches the famous coloratura aria, ‘Der Hölle Rache kocht’ in the second act pretty well, too.
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Jessica Dean does a brilliant cameo role as Papagena, adding much verve and colour. Same goes for Helena Dix, Catriona Barr and Fiona McArdle all the way through as the Three Ladies: dressed as air hostesses, they are endlessly amusing. More quizzical is the addition of Mozart himself on stage as an electric guitar-playing busker – it’s a funny idea, but it doesn’t quite work.
Dane Lam imparts real energy and dynamism both as conductor and guiding light as State Opera SA’s new artistic director. In the pit, he has the Adelaide Symphony Orchestra playing with flowing tempos, neat articulation and great spirit. This Magic Flute is very much his personal vision about what directions he sees ahead for our local company. Bravo to all that.
It is gorgeous Mozart, and one feels the whole team have captured the essence of his one and only folk opera. They have got it just right.
The Magic Flute opened at Her Majesty’s Theatre on Thursday August 28, and continues until September 6