DIRECTOR’S NOTE

In preparing this remarkable and beloved work, Maestro William Hobbs and I never cease to be reminded of the genius of Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart. The idea that the composer invented this music and put it down on paper – some of it when he was already seriously ill – begs the imagination and stirs the spirit.

The plot of Die Zauberflöte is a charming amalgam of low comedy and high ideals. It has been called absurd . . . but is it? A prince (Tamino) and a commoner (Papageno) embark on a perilous journey in search of their perfect mates (Pamina and Papagena). Their quest ultimately becomes the pursuit of virtue, wisdom and harmony, which they attain after undergoing life-threatening trials. Evil is vanquished, and peace and brotherhood reign.

Sounds like an excellent idea to me.                               

---- Michael Philip Davis

HISTORICAL BACKGROUND IN BRIEF

Die Zauberflöte was premiered on September 30, 1791, less than three months before Mozart’s death. It was the composer’s first work written for a popular theatre, rather than for a court audience, and was commissioned by the impresario, playwright and performer Emanuel Schikaneder. Schikaneder wrote the libretto (possibly in consultation with Mozart and others) and created the role of Papageno. The work was an immediate popular success. By 1800, Schikaneder’s Vienna company had performed Die Zauberflöte over 200 times. The opera is markedly different from Mozart’s Italian operas written with librettist Lorenzo Da Ponte, such as Don Giovanni and Le nozze di Figaro. It reverts to spoken dialogue (here presented in English) rather than sung recitative. It is also the only major Mozart opera steeped in fantasy and invoking the supernatural.